The Surgical Treatment of Otosclerosis: Report of Five Years' Experience Including the Fenestra Ovalis Operation of Shea

Abstract

The monumental contributions of Rosen to the field of middle ear surgery are now almost universally accepted. All over the world, stapes mobilization surgery for the relief of deafness due to otosclerosis is being carried out. The operative techniques presently available to the otologic surgeon are many and varied. Until recently, however, this has not been the case. Since the descriptions of the Rosen tilt procedure first appeared in the literature,1there has been a gradual evolutionary development in these surgical techniques as well as a significant improvement in the results obtained. The culmination of these advances can be seen in today's complex and specialized operative procedures. At this point, when these techniques of otosclerosis surgery are gaining increasingly widespread application, it seems of value to recount the experiences of the last five years, during which time our (D.M. and W.D.S.) surgical techniques have undergone a considerable degree of