PROGNOSTIC VALUE OF THE CRANIOFACIAL GROWTH AND DEVELOPMENT IN CHILDREN WITH SECRETORY OTITIS MEDIA (SOM)
Kemaloglu YK, Goksu N, Akyildiz N
Gazi University Faculty of Medicine Department of ORL-Head & Neck Surgery, Ankara, Turkey.
SOM is worldwide problem which primarily affects young children. As well known, growth and development process is the outstanding characteristic of childhood. Therefore, it could be suggested that SOM is a disease related to establishing of the normal anatomy and function of the "mastoid-middle ear -Eustachian tube (M-ME-ET) system" in parallel to growth and development process of the craniofacial skeleton (CFS). In our previous studies, it has been shown that any deviation in the posterior cranial base and/or the posterior maxilla brings about corresponding imbalances in position of the Eustachian tube ET) (more horizontal), in length of the bony ET (short) and in configuration of the cartilaginous ET (variations in position of the lateral lamina). Furthermore, it has been found that the mastoid pneumatization is associated with growth and development of the CFS, and the ET and mastoid pneumatization act as components of a functional matrix related to middle ear aeration and pressure adaptation.
In this study, craniofacial skeleton of 50 children with bilateral SOM in five age groups (48 to 49, 60 to 71, 72 to 83, 84 to 95, 96 to 119 months), 50 age-matched children with nasal obstruction due to adenoidal enlargement but normal ears, and 50 age-matched normal children were analyzed on lateral cephalographies. Data has shown that prognosis of SOM is closely associated with position of the ET in relative to the posterior cranial base, and the mastoid pneumatization. Furthermore, position of the ET and mastoid pneumatization were correlated to each other in respect to growth and development process of CFS.