Balloon dilation for eustachian tube dysfunction: systematic review

Abstract

Background: Eustachian tube dysfunction is a disorder for which there are limited medical and surgical treatments. Recently, eustachian tube balloon dilation has been proposed as a potential solution.Method: A systematic literature review was performed. Abstracts were selected for relevance, and pooled data analysis and qualitative analysis was conducted.Results: Nine prospective studies, describing 713 eustachian tube balloon dilations in 474 patients (aged 18-86 years), were identified. Follow-up duration ranged from 1.5 to 18 months. Ability to perform a Valsalva manoeuvre improved from 20 to 177 out of 245 ears following eustachian tube balloon dilation and, where data were reported in terms of patient numbers, from 15 to 189 out of 210 patients. Tympanograms were classified as type A in 7 out of 141 ears pre-operatively and in 86 out of 141 ears post-operatively.Conclusion: Prospective case series can confirm the safety of eustachian tube balloon dilation. As a potential solution for chronic eustachian tube dysfunction, further investigations are warranted to establish a higher level of evidence of efficacy.

Navigation-Assisted Balloon Eustachian Tuboplasty for Eustachian Tube Dilatory Dysfunction

“…BET has emerged as a new minimally invasive intervention used for the treatment of ETD [15,16]. In this study, we developed an image-guided navigation balloon catheter to be used during BET to treat ETD.…”

Comparison of Balloon Dilation and Laser Eustachian Tuboplasty in Patients with Eustachian Tube Dysfunction: A Meta‐analysis

“…The most recent systematic review examining balloon dilatation for eustachian tube dysfunction was performed in 2016. 9 Five of the studies in that review were included in the current analysis. [23][24][25][26][27] The authors identified 9 prospective studies that included 474 patients and 713 balloon dilatations with a follow-up duration ranging from 1.5 to 18 months.…”

Eustachian Tube Balloon Dilation: Emerging Practice Patterns for a Novel Procedure

“…21,22 Schröder et al 23 reported improvement in tube scores from 3.13 (±2.47 SD) to 5.75 (±2.76 SD) after 1 year and 2.65 (±2.89 SD) to 6.26 (±3.07 SD) after 2 years. 23 A recent meta-analysis by Hwang et al 20 reported favorable outcomes after ETBD in which 7 studies assessed improvement in Valsalva or Toynbee maneuver from 20 (8%) preoperatively to 177 (72%) out of 245 ears following ETBD. Six studies [24][25][26][27][28][29] used tympanograms as their outcome metric and found that in preoperative ears, 7 out of 141 ears (5%) had a type A tympanogram, as compared to 86 out of 141 ears (61%) postoperatively.…”