Otosclerosis

Otosclerosis (Middle Ear Calcification)

Otosclerosis disease, also known as middle ear calcification, is one of the common causes of hearing loss. Otosclerosis, which is a genetically inherited disease, can occur after skipping several generations.

The first stage of hearing is when sound waves reach the eardrum through the outer ear canal and vibrate the membrane. This vibration is transferred to the inner ear fluids through tiny ossicles called hammer, anvil and stirrup located in the middle ear. Sound waves converted into electrical energy at the nerve endings here are transmitted to the hearing centers in the brain via the auditory nerve, providing hearing.

Problems in the transfer of sound waves from the outer and middle ear to the inner ear fluids cause "conductive hearing loss". In this type of loss, the hearing organs in the inner ear are intact, but sound waves cannot reach these organs. Hearing losses originating from the inner ear and auditory nerve are called "sensorineural type hearing loss". In otosclerosis, a disease that can also affect the inner ear, both types of loss are often seen together. This type of hearing loss is called “mixed hearing loss”.

Hearing Loss Due to Otosclerosis

In otosclerosis disease, spongy-looking new bone formations occur in the form of foci in the bone structure that houses the inner ear hearing organs.

When these changes affect the hearing organs in the inner ear, nerve-type hearing loss called "cochlear otosclerosis" occurs.

The most common place where the disease is observed is the region called the oval window, where the base of the stirrup bone transmits sound wave vibrations to the inner ear. The focus of otosclerosis here prevents the vibration of the stapes bone, disrupting the transmission of sound waves to the inner ear, and as a result, conductive hearing loss occurs.

The type and degree of hearing loss occurring in otosclerosis varies depending on the extent of involvement (restriction of movement) of the stirrup bone and the extent to which the hearing organs in the inner ear are affected by the disease.

Otosclerosis Treatment

Medical treatment: Some treatments are used to slow down the progression of hearing loss, especially in diseases that are detected at a young age and progress rapidly. However, there is no medical treatment for otosclerosis.

Surgical treatment: With "stapedectomy" surgery, the stapes bone, whose movement is restricted, is removed and replaced with a prosthesis that will transmit sound waves to the inner ear. With this surgery, which can be performed under local or general anesthesia, 90-95% successful results are obtained, and conductive hearing loss can be almost completely corrected in the majority of patients. Surgery is not recommended for patients with very mild conductive hearing loss or severe nerve-type hearing loss in which the inner ear hearing organs are severely affected. Stapedectomy surgery is recommended for all otosclerosis patients unless there is a serious health problem that prevents surgery.

You may experience dizziness for a few days after the surgery. Surgical sponges placed inside the ear at the end of the surgery are removed within 7-10 days, and patients can return to their normal lives at the end of this period.

Although the risks of stapedectomy surgery performed with appropriate surgical equipment and surgical techniques are quite low, there is an approximately 1% risk of hearing loss in each surgery. Apart from this, complications such as a hole in the eardrum, damage to the facial nerve, infection in the ear, and early dislodgment of the piston can be observed much more rarely.

Hearing Aids: Every patient who would benefit from surgery can also benefit from a hearing aid. Especially patients with bilateral otosclerosis and those who do not prefer surgery are recommended to use hearing aids to prevent their inner ear functions from declining in parallel with decreased hearing.

Stapedectomy – Middle Ear Calcification Surgery

With the "stapedectomy" surgery, the stapes bone, whose movement is restricted due to otosclerosis, is removed and replaced with a prosthesis that will transmit sound waves to the inner ear. With this surgery, which can be performed under local or general anesthesia, 90-95% successful results are obtained, and conductive hearing loss can be almost completely corrected in the majority of patients.

Surgery is not recommended for patients with very mild conductive hearing loss or severe nerve-type hearing loss in which the inner ear hearing organs are severely affected. Stapedectomy surgery is recommended for all otosclerosis patients unless there is a serious health problem that prevents surgery.

You may experience dizziness for a few days after the surgery. Surgical sponges placed inside the ear at the end of the surgery are removed within 7-10 days, and patients can return to their normal lives at the end of this period.

Although the risks of stapedectomy surgery performed with appropriate surgical equipment and surgical techniques are quite low, there is an approximately 1% risk of hearing loss in each surgery. Apart from this, complications such as a hole in the eardrum, damage to the facial nerve, infection in the ear, and early dislodgment of the piston can be observed much more rarely.