[Effect of the surgical treatment of cleft palate on pathology of the middle ear. Apropos of 49 cases].

The presence of middle ear disease was analyzed in 49 patients with soft palate cleft, and more particularly the influence of surgical repair and early therapy. Clinical examination, impedancemetry and audiometry carried out preoperatively and at follow up more than 3 months after surgery showed that although surgical closure of cleft provokes some improvement (40% of cases) some degree of seromucous otitis persisted in most patients, with a very partial positive influence of early surgery. Other physiopathologic factors are involved in the genesis of seromucous otitis, which cannot be cured by early surgery for soft palate cleft alone.