Tympanostomy tubes. Infectious complications.

Tympanostomy tube placement for a variety of indications is one of the most commonly performed surgical procedures in the United States. In the voluminous literature on the subject, little attention has been paid to the infectious complications associated with the insertion of tympanostomy tubes. A 4 1/2-year retrospective study of 140 patients to examine this problem revealed that 21.4% had otorrhea at least once during intubation. Five patients had prolonged and complicated problems associated with otorrhea. These problems are examined in detail, and the implications of the otorrhea associated with tympanostomy tubes are discussed.