Myringosclerosis in hemodialysis patients with hyperparathyroidism.

Myringosclerosis is the final stage of the middle ear lamina propria inflammation or trauma; it starts with collagen production in excess amounts in the lamina propria of the middle ear mucosa. Then, hyalinization and calcification occur. Later on, metaplasia of bone or cartilage can occur. A similar sequence occurs with hyperparathyroidism in chronic kidney disease. This study is aimed to detect the prevalence of myringosclerosis in patients of our hemodialysis (HD) unit and find out any association between hyperparathyroidism and myringosclerosis in chronic HD patients. A total number of 86 patients were selected according to the inclusion criteria. They were divided into two groups: Group 1 (58 patients myringosclerosis free patients on regular HD), Group 2 (28 patients myringosclerosis-positive patients on regular HD). No statically significant difference was found in serum parathyroid hormone levels between the two studied groups. Serum creatinine was significantly higher in Group 2, serum ferritin was significantly lower in Group 2, and mean corpuscular volume of red blood cells was highly significantly lower in Group 2. Myringosclerosis affects 32% of our HD patients and we could not detect any strong correlation between myringosclerosis and hyperparathyroidism.

Does calcemia influence the onset of myringosclerosis after myringotomy with the insertion of ventilation tubes?

INTRODUCTION: Myringosclerosis is one of the most frequent late complications of the insertion of ventilation tubes, and its aetiopathogenesis remains unknown. The calcification that occurs in the formation of myringosclerosis plaque raises the hypothesis of the presence of a calcium metabolism disorder. The objective is to determine whether calcemia contributes to the development of myringoscelerosis after insertion of ventilation tubes. MATERIAL AND METHODS: A longitudinal, prospective, analytical cohort study was conducted in patients undergoing myringotomy with the insertion of ventilation tubes due to otitis media with effusion. Calcemia was evaluated pre-operatively and in the follow-up the appearance of myringosclerosis and the percentage of the tympanum involved were evaluated. RESULTS: The study included 156 patients (297 ears), with calcemia values ranging from 7.6 to 10.2mg/dl. Myringosclerosis was identified in 35.4% of the operated ears. No relationship was found between the appearance of myringosclerosis and calcemia (p=.596). It was found, however, that the greater the percentage of the tympanum affected by myringosclerosis, the lower the calcemia values (p=.014). CONCLUSION: The population studied had calcemia values within the normal range, which allows us to infer that no changes in calcium metabolism are required for the development of myringosclerosis. Moreover, unlike in previous studies, higher calcium levels are not associated with more myringosclerosis. Calcemia did not influence the appearance of myringosclerosis after myringotomy with the insertion of ventilation tubes.

Genetic polymorphisms affecting antioxidant enzymes are present in tympanosclerosis patients.

BACKGROUND: This study investigated genetic polymorphisms affecting the inducible nitric oxide synthase, superoxide dismutase and catalase enzymes in chronic otitis media patients with and without tympanosclerosis, and the role of genetic susceptibility in the disease aetiology. METHODS: A total of 162 patients who underwent surgery for chronic otitis media were divided into two study groups: a tympanosclerosis group and a chronic otitis media group. A third, the control, group comprised 188 healthy volunteers. Venous blood samples were evaluated using reverse transcriptase polymerase chain reaction. RESULTS: There was a significant difference in GG genotype distribution of the -277A>G polymorphism in the NOS2 gene between the tympanosclerosis and control groups (p T) polymorphism in the SOD2 gene (p > 0.05). There were significant differences in the TT genotype distribution of the -21A>T polymorphism in the CAT gene between the tympanosclerosis and control groups, and between the chronic otitis media and control groups (p < 0.05). CONCLUSION: These results suggest that genetic predisposition may play a role in the aetiopathogenesis of tympanosclerosis.