Objective: Assessing long-term results of patients treated with total ossicular replacement prosthesis (TORP)-vibroplasty.
Design: Retrospective analysis.
Setting: Tertiary referral center.
Patients: A total of five patients (two women, three men; mean age, 66 yr) were eligible for evaluation after an average follow-up period of 5.1 years after TORP-vibroplasty.
Interventions: Implantation of an active middle ear device in conjunction with a titanium coupler for oval window placement in patients with chronic middle ear disease with missing stapes suprastructure.
Main outcome measures: Audiometric outcomes and satisfaction of the patients.
Results: The functional gain was 45.2 and 45.6 dB HL at 6 months and 5.1 years after implantation, respectively. The speech recognition using the Freiburg monosyllabic word test and speech intelligibility showed postoperatively a distinct improvement and revealed no statistically significant change across time for the entire follow-up period. According to the International Outcome Inventory for Hearing Aids questionnaire, the patients stated considerable subjective benefits and satisfaction with the device.
Conclusion: The good outcomes of TORP-vibroplasty in chronic disabled ears are stable. They provide long-term and long-lasting satisfying audiologic results combined with a high satisfaction of the patient. Prerequisite is the stable attachment to the cochlear windows.