A CLINICAL STUDY ON IMPROVEMENT OF MIDDLE EAR FUNCTION IN PATIENTS UNDERGOING ADENOIDECTOMY

Background:Adenoid hypertrophy, a common condition in children, can lead to various complications, including otitis media with effusion. The present study aims to examine the improvement of middle ear function in patients who have undergone adenoidectomy, focusing on comparing tympanometry results pre-and post-surgery. Methods: This prospective clinical study was conducted for one year in the Department of Otolaryngology-Head and Neck Surgery, Acharya Shri Chander College of Medical Sciences and Hospital, Jammu. The study comprised 60 patients of Adenoid hypertrophy with OME (otitis media with effusion) aged between 3yrs-15yrs old diagnosed through clinical examination, tests such as x-ray nasopharynx, diagnostic nasal endoscopy, pure tone audiometry, and tympanometry. Repeat pure tone audiometry and tympanometry was performed after one month and three months. Descriptive statistics were used to summarize the demographic and clinical characteristics of the study population Results: The mean age of the patients was 8.2 years (range: 3-15 years). The majority of patients -56 (93.3%) reported nasal obstruction, 52 patients (86.6%) reported mouth breathing, 50 patients (83.3%) reported recurrent Ear infection, 44 patients (73.2%) reported hearing loss, 38 patients (63.3%) reported nasal discharge. The preoperative pure-tone audiometry thresholds showed a mean hearing loss of 32.4 dB HL, which improved to 28.6 dB HL at one month and further to 24.2 at three months postoperatively. Moreover, the preoperative hearing loss increased from 32.4 to 26.2 db HL. Conclusions: Surgical removal of the adenoids is an effective intervention in improving middle-ear function and hearing outcomes, particularly in younger children.