title: Has the use of the linear incision reduced skin complications in bone-anchored hearing aid implantation?
abstract: OBJECTIVE
  To compare the skin-related complications of the traditional skin flap method with a linear incision method of implantation.
  
  
  METHODS
  All cases of bone-anchored hearing aid surgery performed by a single surgeon (n = 117) were compared over two periods: 1999-2011, when the traditional method of skin flap and soft tissue removal was used (group 1; n = 86), and 2012-2013, when linear incision without soft tissue removal was used (group 2; n = 31). All patients were followed up for one year and complications were recorded for that period.
  
  
  RESULTS
  There were 21 (24.4 per cent) skin-related complications in group 1 (skin overgrowth = 12, wound infection = 8 and numbness = 1) and 3 (9.7 per cent) complications in group 2 (wound infection = 3). Analysis using independent t-tests showed the results to be significant (p < 0.05; 95 per cent confidence interval = 0.0800-0.4473).
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  The linear incision without soft tissue removal method for bone-anchored hearing aid implantation reduces skin complication rates.
authors.affiliation: Department of Otolaryngology,University of Dundee School of Medicine,Ninewells Hospital,Dundee,Scotland,UK.
authors.forename: R
authors.initials: R
authors.lastname: Roplekar
authors.affiliation: Department of Otolaryngology,University of Dundee School of Medicine,Ninewells Hospital,Dundee,Scotland,UK.
authors.forename: A
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Lim
authors.affiliation: Department of Otolaryngology,University of Dundee School of Medicine,Ninewells Hospital,Dundee,Scotland,UK.
authors.forename: S S M
authors.initials: SS
authors.lastname: Hussain
mesh_terms: D006310:Hearing Aids; D034381:Hearing Loss / Q000534:rehabilitation*; D006801:Humans; D006987:Hypesthesia / Q000453:epidemiology*; D013506:Otologic Surgical Procedures / Q000379:methods*; D011183:Postoperative Complications / Q000453:epidemiology; D019919:Prosthesis Implantation / Q000379:methods*; D012189:Retrospective Studies; D012871:Skin Diseases / Q000453:epidemiology*; D013524:Surgical Flaps; D013530:Surgical Wound Infection / Q000453:epidemiology*
keywords: Complications; Hearing Aids; Osseointegration; Wound Healing; Wound Infection