Tympanocentesis

With the advent of antibiotics, many interventions and treatments previously used for infectious diseases, such as tympanocentesis, have become less utilized. Tympanocentesis is a minor surgical procedure used to treat otitis media and many otologic disorders. The procedure involves puncturing the tympanic membrane with a small-gauge needle and removing fluid behind the eardrum for therapeutic and diagnostic purposes (see Tympanocentesis). Tympanocentesis was first documented in 1768 and has been used to manage ear diseases, particularly otitis media, and has undergone significant advancements. Otitis media is a prevalent condition characterized by infection or inflammation of the middle ear and is a common reason individuals seek medical attention from pediatricians, family practitioners, and urgent-care healthcare professionals. The common subtypes of otitis media include acute otitis media, adhesive otitis media, otitis media with effusion, and chronic suppurative otitis media. Currently, clinicians perform the tympanocentesis procedure for treating otitis media cases unresponsive to conventional antibiotic therapy, particularly those involving multidrug-resistant otopathogens, and for managing other otological disorders, including retraction of the tympanic membrane, Ménière disease, and sudden sensorineural hearing loss (SSNHL). Due to the widespread availability of antimicrobial drugs, many clinicians empirically treat otitis media without aspirating middle ear fluid for culture to guide antibiotic selection. Tympanocentesis reduces the risk of treatment failure, susceptibility to otitis, and the need for tympanostomy tube placement while also serving as a conduit for the drainage of otorrhea.