Objective: Fascia or cartilage can be used as grafts in tympanoplasty; however, the disadvantage of cartilage is that it causes stiffness and rigidity in the newly formed tympanic membrane. The aim of this study was to compare the long-term high-frequency tympanometry and audiometry outcomes of tympanoplasty using cartilage and fascia.Methods: Forty patients in whom tragal cartilage was used in type 1 tympanoplasty and 40 patients in whom temporal muscle fascia was used were included in the study. The preoperative and postoperative audiometries of the two groups were compared. Postoperative highfrequency tympanometry (224, 668, 800, and 1000 Hz) and air volume, compliance, and pressure differences of the two groups were also compared. Results:The mean age of the patients was 31.3±4.5 year. The success rates were 96% in the cartilage group and 92% in the fascia group. In the fascia group, the preoperative mean air bone gap was 27.9±97 decibels (dB), and the postoperative mean air bone gap was 19.1±7.6 dB. The postoperative mean air bone gap improvement was 8.8±9.9 dB; the difference was statistically significant. In the cartilage group, the preoperative mean air bone gap was 28.2±9.6 dB, and the postoperative mean air bone gap was 17.2±10.5 dB. The postoperative mean air bone gap improvement was 10.9±10.3 dB; the difference was statistically significant. When postoperative mean air bone gap improvement was compared, there was no statistical difference between the two groups. When high-frequency tympanogram values were compared, there were no significant differences between the two groups at 224, 668, 800, or 1000 Hz frequencies in terms of air volume, compliance, or pressure values. Conclusion:The use of temporal muscle fascia and cartilage in tympanoplasty is statistically similar when compared in terms of tympanic membrane repair, hearing gain, air volume, pressure, and compliance. For this reason, cartilage graft can easily be preferred in tympanoplasty, especially in revision cases and adhesive otitis media, without fear of stiffness or rigidity effects.

Atrophic rhinitis (AR) is a disease characterized by the extensive dilatation of the nasal cavity and atrophy of the mucosa, submucosa and bone tissue. Its etiological factors are unknown. There is not a satisfying treatment yet and the treatment of the functional impairment in the atrophic cells is still subject to investigation. The objective of this study is to determine at the histopathological level the possible effects of the submucosal fat injection in an experimental model of AR. 12 albino Wistar-Hannover male rats were included in the study. AR was induced with the Pasteurella multocida toxin, which was diluted with saline. As one of the rats died during the study, it was excluded from the evaluation. The right nasal cavities of all rats (11 nasal cavities) were defined as the control group (Group 1). Fat tissue obtained from the abdominal area was injected in the seven left nasal cavities (Group 2). All injections, which were done to the abdominal regions were also done in the left nasal cavities of the remaining four rats, which constituted the sham group (Group 3). After 14 days, all rats were decapitated and the squamous metaplasia and keratinization in the superficial epithelium, degeneration, vacuolar changes in the basal layer, congestion, inflammatory infiltration, vascular proliferation and glandular atrophy in the submucosa are histopathologically classified. The results were analyzed with statistical methods. Although glandular atrophy was significantly regressed in the fat injection group (Group 2) compared to other groups (p < 0.05), the remaining parameters did not show any significant difference among these three groups. The histopathological effect of the fat injection was modest. We concluded that fat injection treatment has no or at the most a very limited effect in the treatment of atrophic rhinitis.

Poster PresentationsP255 the mean was 4.70 (standard deviation 3.21), a significant improvement compared to baseline. No significant differences between the improvement obtained with topical corticosteroid therapy and/or oral were found. No differences were found comparing to treatment response of anosmia related to CRS.Conclusions: Postviral anosmia occurs most often in women. Olfactory recovery is uncommon, and topical or systemic corticosteroids were similarly ineffective. Prevalence of Fungal Sensitization in Patients withPolypoid Chronic Rhinosinusitis: A Cross-Sectional Study Ditza De Vilhena, MD (presenter); Gustavo Lopes, MD; Cidália Martins; Delfim Duarte, MD; Cristina Opes, MDObjectives: Although allergic fungal rhinosinusitis (AFRS) is a well-recognized entity, few data are published concerning the prevalence of mold sensitization in patients with polypoid chronic rhinosinusitis (PCRS). Our aim was to determine the prevalence of fungal and common aeroallergen sensitization in a sample of adult patients with PCRS at an ear, nose, and throat clinical setting.Methods: All adult patients with PCRS who underwent sinus surgery between September 2012 and December 2013 were invited to participate. Prick tests were done with Alternaria alternata (Aa), Cladosporium herbarum (Ch), Aspergillus fumigatus (Af), Curvularia lunata (Cl), Fusarium monilifo (Fm), Dermatophagoydes pteronyssinus (Dp), and grass-pollen extract (extracts Merck). T Student and chisquare tests were determined using SPSS v22, and applied when appropriate. A P value <.05 was considered significant.Results: Sixty-three patients were included (60% men), mean age (SD) 45 (15.4) years old. Of the patients, 14.3% had at least 1 positive skin prick test for molds (9.5% for Aa, 4.8% for Ch, 6.3% for Af, 4.8% for Cl and 4.8% for Fm). Fortypercent were allergic to dust mite and 27% to pollen. We failed to detect an association between fungal sensitization and age (P = .838), sex (P = .674), and Dp sensitization (P = .074), but we found a positive association between fungal and grasspollen sensitization (41.2% vs 4.3%, P < .001).Conclusions: Almost one-sixth of our patients were mold sensitized. The routine determination of fungal allergic profile may improve the assessment of patients with PCRS, increasing awareness to AFRS diagnosis.

Objectives: Investigate the histopathological effects of fat grafting harvested from lipoaspirate adipose tissue on atrophic rhinitis in an animal model. Methods: An animal model of atrophic rhinitis was obtained by application of pasturella multocida toxin diluted with 0.9% NaCl into nasal cavities for 3 weeks. Eleven Wistar Hanover rats were included in this study and divided into 2 groups. The study group was composed of one side of nasal cavity with atrophic rhinitis. The fat grafting harvested from lipoaspirate adipose tissue was applied into nasal cavity submucosally. After 2 weeks of follow-up, rats were decapitated and nasal cavities were resected totally. A histopathological examination was done. Results: There was a significant improvement in the study group compared with other groups according to basal membrane degeneration and glandular atrophy. The vacuolar degeneration, squamous metaplasia, keratinization, vascular proliferation, inflammatory infiltration, and congestion were not significantly different between groups. Conclusions: Our study showed that fat grafting harvested from lipoaspirate adipose tissue has a positive healing effect over degenerated mucosa on atrophic rhinitis, in addition to the volume enhancer effect of tissue itself. The adipose tissue may normalize the volume of large nasal cavities caused by atrophic rhinitis. In addition, histopathological disorders of atrophic rhinitis, such as glandular atrophy and basal membrane degeneration, are reversed significantly.

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