Taneja, Virangna1; Iyer, Arunachalam1
1 Department of Otolaryngology & Head Neck Surgery, University Hospital Monklands, Airdrie, UK.
Introduction:
Trans canal endoscopic ear surgery (TEES) is a relatively new method of treatment for ear disease. Although there are studies on outcomes of TEES (1)none of the studies have assessed the quality of life (QoL) of patients after surgery. This study uses the validated Glasgow Benefit Inventory (GBI) (2) to quantify the changes in quality of life.
Materials & Methods:
152 consecutive patients undergoing ear surgery at University Hospital Monklands and Wishaw were enrolled in the study. They underwent surgery between December 2013 and December 2015 and included both endoscopic as well as microscopic procedures. Questionnaires were completed between 2-4yrs after surgery.
Results:
The response rate was 89.47% (no response -15, deceased – 1). Maximum benefit was noted in patients who underwent Myringoplasty and Tympanoplasty for discharging ear. There was considerable difference in terms of GBI score between endoscopic cases vs. microscopic especially in social scores (p = 0.045).Comparing the type of surgeries separately, total, physical and social score were better in patients operated for discharging ears by endoscopic route but were not statistically significant. Even though the QoL scores improved in cholesteatoma and stapedectomy in all domains, only social scores were better than microscopic cases, but this was not statistically significant.
Conclusion:
This study is the first to demonstrate an improvement in quality of life after Endoscopic ear surgery. Improvement in social domain was better than the open and combined approach indicating a possible benefit by avoiding external incisions.