title: Postinflammatory medial canal fibrosis.
abstract: OBJECTIVE
  Our objective was to describe the diagnosis and treatment of postinflammatory medial canal fibrosis by reviewing a large series.
  
  
  METHODS
  This study was conducted via retrospective chart review.
  
  
  METHODS
  This study was conducted at a tertiary otologic referral center.
  
  
  METHODS
  The 24 patients had a clinical diagnosis of postinflammatory medial canal stenosis. Only one of the 16 females and eight males was under 18 years of age, and the mean age for the group was 50.5 years (range 5-78). fourteen patients had bilateral diseases.
  
  
  METHODS
  Surgical therapy was performed in 14 ears (11 patients), and medical therapy was performed in nine.
  
  
  RESULTS
  For patients undergoing surgical treatment, mean pure-tone average hearing threshold improved from 37 dB preoperatively to 26 dB postoperatively. The air-bone gap improved from 24 dB to 15 dB. There were three recurrences of disease in the surgery group.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  Postinflammatory medial canal stenosis is a rare disorder resulting from chronic external otitis that required surgical intervention to correct the resulting conductive hearing loss.
authors.affiliation: House Ear Institute, Los Angeles, CA 90057-9927, USA.
authors.forename: W H
authors.initials: WH
authors.lastname: Slattery
authors.forename: P
authors.initials: P
authors.lastname: Saadat
mesh_terms: D004424:Ear Canal / Q000601:surgery; D004427:Ear Diseases / Q000209:etiology* / Q000601:surgery; D005260:Female; D005355:Fibrosis / Q000175:diagnosis / Q000209:etiology / Q000601:surgery; D006314:Hearing Loss, Conductive / Q000209:etiology; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D010032:Otitis Externa / Q000150:complications*; D012189:Retrospective Studies; D014057:Tomography, X-Ray Computed; D014432:Tympanic Membrane / Q000000981:diagnostic imaging