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[medicallaser-blog]

Middle Ear Surgery and Critical Role Played by the Middle ‎Ear in the Hearing Process

The human ear is one of the great wonders of the human body for it shows how creative the creator of the human body is. It also shows how the evolution of the human body is quite a complex evolution that has culminated into the development of one of the finest and highly efficient organs of the human body called the "ear." You may not appreciate the great wonders that are happening every time you hear something on your ear, because you may not be truly and totally cognizant of the great magic that occurs inside your ear. But if you would carefully consider how the sound waves that enter your ear are transformed into electrical signals by your inner ear, you would surely be taken aback by how wonderful this transformation is. You would only appreciate such wonder when you suddenly lose the functionality of your ear and become deaf. Oblivious to sounds, you would no longer hear the music and the voices of your loved ones, and you would surely long for the time that your ears, both left and right, were still functional.

Importance of the Human Ear to a Holistic Existence

Humans have the tendency to take for granted something until that something is gone. In the same manner, many people seldom appreciate the magical hearing process of their body until these people lose partially or totally their sense of hearing.

Some people were born deaf and once they gain the use of their hearing organ via surgery, they become profusely appreciative and thankful of the gift of hearing. Likewise, there are people who are hard of hearing due to congenital defects. These people too manifest great thankfulness after having their congenital defects corrected via surgery.

Stapedotomy is one of the surgical procedures that aim to remedy the hearing problem of some people. This surgical procedure is performed on the middle ear to make the stapes’ footplate more flexible. Tympanoplasty is another surgical procedure designed to reconstruct the eardrum and the small bones located in the middle ear. Both these two middle ear surgeries often make use of CO2 lasers.  

There are many diseases that may affect the middle ear and some of these diseases include Cholesteatoma, eosinophilic otitis media, Otitis Media and many more, and some of these diseases may cause partial or total hearing loss.

How is Tympanoplasty Performed?

Tympanoplasty is a surgical procedure that is designed to reconstruct the eardrum or what we commonly call the tympanic membrane, and the middle ear's small bones. There are different types of tympanoplasty. The first type of tympanoplasty only involves the repair of the tympanic membrane. This type is usually synonymous with myringoplasty. The second type involves a tympanic membrane's repair plus a slight repair of the ossicles of the middle ear. The third type involves removing the epytympanum and the ossicles due to some defects in the malleus and the incus. The fourth type involves surgical operations to remedy the absence of crura in the movable footplate of the stapes. The last type, on the other hand, include reconfiguring the fixed footplate of the stapes.  

[medicallaser-blog]

The Intricacy of Middle Ear Surgery and the Use of Laser for this Surgery

The medical uses of lasers have definitely expanded in the recent years, thanks to the hard works and researches done by both medical as well as manufacturers of medical lasers. It would be impossible to come up with functional and workable medical lasers without the necessary collaborations between medical experts, engineers who design, and companies that manufacture the different medical laser equipment. Just like any other equipment that is produced for different industries, a medical laser starts with a prototype laser that is then tested. If proven to be effective and efficient for medical usage, only then the actual manufacturing of the laser equipment would begin. But the conceptual and manufacturing process of medical lasers definitely undergo several stages before an actual laser is used on the surgical table.

Since medical lasers are usually used in performing sensitive surgical operations that require utmost precision, it is therefore imperative for manufacturers to produce laser equipment that can function precisely and efficiently during surgery. If you would look at how delicate the human body is, you would readily know how sensitive and how crucial the role played by medical lasers in the success of surgical operations. The eye, for example, is one organ of the human body on which lasers are used during eye treatments for diseases like glaucoma. Hence, it is important that laser equipment should function with utmost precision when used in eye surgery.

Another therapy that requires utmost precision is that of middle ear therapy or stapedotomy. Stapedotomy is one of the procedures performed to improve hearing. One malady that usually affects hearing occurs when the stapes footplate is not flexible, but fixed in its position. The stapes footplate normally should be mobile. In case the stapes footplate is fixed, there is a need to remove the stapes bone and replace the bone with micro prosthesis. This process is called stapedectomy.

Further Understanding Stapedotomy  

Stapedotomy is a modified stapes operation which most surgeons consider to be safe and can reduce the complications after surgery. Using laser or a microdrill, the surgeon usually drills a tiny hole on the footplate. Afterwards, the surgeon places a prosthesis that allows this area to absorb movement from tympanic membrane. The process of stapedotomy starts with injecting anesthetic into the skin of the ear canal. The purpose of this anesthetic is to enable the surgeon to reach the bone of the stapes by first lifting the eardrum and the canal skin to expose the bone of the stapes. The skin is first cut or incise before it can be lifted. The incus afterwards is disconnected from the stapes. A laser is then utilized to detach the stapes superstructure while deliberately preserving the footplate of the stapes. Then once again, the laser is utilized to drill a specific hole on the footplate of the stapes. Lastly, an implant is then attached to the hole and secured to the incus bone. Then, the eardrum and canal skin are returned to their former position. Lastly, this surgical procedure is usually complemented by the utilization of tissue graft seal. The laser stapedotomy is already one of the favorite procedures performed by surgeons to remedy middle ear malady and it is already a well-established medical procedure of ear surgery.  

For more information about Middle ear surgery, visit: http://www.lumenis.com/Solutions/Surgical/CO2-Products/OtoLase.