Objective: To determine the incidence and prevalence of tympanosclerosis (T
S) in patients seen in a pediatric otolaryngology clinic. Design: Prospecti
ve observational study. Setting: Tertiary care, ambulatory care clinic. Pat
ients and other participants: We conducted a prospective observational stud
y to determine the incidence of TS in 218 patients seen consecutively in a
pediatric otolaryngology clinic for otologic and nonotologic reasons. The p
atient age range was 3 weeks to 30 years; 63% were male and 37% female. Of
the 218 patients, 37% (81) had undergone bilateral myringotomy and tube pla
cement (BM&T), and 35% (21) of the 81 showed signs of TS; 63% (137) of the
218 patients had no history of otologic surgery, but 12% (15) of the 137 sh
owed signs of TS. Method: The area of the tympanic membrane affected by TS
was determined by otoscopy performed by one viewer, who drew the otoscopic
findings on a standardized tympanic membrane template. The area of TS was q
uantified in terms of percentages by digital image analysis of the scaled d
rawings. Results: There was a range of 0.5-59.9% involvement of the tympani
c membrane with TS, with the median percentage of involvement being 4.95%.
There was an increased percentage of TS with repeat BM&T. Conclusion: This
observational study shows that patients who have had BM&T have a higher inc
idence of TS than those who have not had the surgery. However our findings
also show that 38% of the patients in this study who had TS had never under
gone BM&T. (C) 2001 Elsevier Science Ireland Ltd. All rights reserved.