Stapedectomy

The stapes is the third of three tiny bones in the middle ear and the one closest to the inner ear. It’s occasionally called the stirrup.

In some cases, the stapes can become stuck and cannot vibrate freely, as it is intended to do in order to transmit sound into the inner ear. A condition called Otosclerosis.

This leads to a form of hearing loss called: a conductive hearing loss. This condition can also reach the inner ear capsule, resulting in another type of hearing loss called sensorineural hearing loss.

Stapedectomy is a procedure that aims to cut the stapes bone with laser and replace it with a prosthetic.

Lippy et al. (2003), in their article Twenty-Year Review of Revision Stapedectomy, concluded that “more than 70% of revision stapedectomy cases for hearing improvement have had successful closure of their air-bone gap. Since the introduction of the laser 5 years ago, the success rate has increased to 80%. In those specific cases where the laser was required, the success rate increased to 91.4%” (p.560).

These percentages were confirmed by the Sunny Brook Health Sciences Center, who stated that 85% of patients will have a significant hearing improvement.

The procedure is done in the middle ear through a small incision above the ear called an endaural incision. The eardrum is lifted up and the middle ear is entered. In order to replace the stapes, the top half of the bone is removed using laser. Afterwards, a small opening is made through the footplate of the stapes again using a laser.

SIFLASER surgical devices, particularly the SIFLASER-1.1, SIFLASER 3.3 and SIFLASER 3.2 have a wide range of wavelengths that varies between 455 nm and 1470 nm and a power range of 0.5W – 60W, depending on the application of the product and adaptable to the needs of the otologists or otolaryngologists.

Short wavelengths have more superficial penetration, while longer wavelengths have deeper penetration in the tissue, making them very suitable for stapedectomy.

References:
Twenty-year review of revision
Laser Stapedotomy

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Disclaimer: Although the information we provide is used by doctors to perform their procedures and clinical applications, the Information contained in this article is for consideration only. SIFSOF is not responsible neither for the misuse of the device nor for the device’s suitability with each clinical application or procedure mentioned in this article. Doctors, or any medical staff must have the proper training and skills to perform the procedure with each laser device.

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