Complete restoration of congenital conductive hearing loss by staged surgery: A case report

BACKGROUND: Stapedial tendon ossification is a rare disease, with only a few reports. The stapedial tendon originates from the apex of the pyramidal eminence and is attached to the neck of the stapes. In stapedial tendon ossification, the stapes is fixed, causing conductive hearing loss. In most cases, complete hearing restoration is achieved by dividing the stapedial tendon after exploratory tympanotomy. CASE SUMMARY: A 28-year-old woman presented to our hospital with the major complaint of bilateral hearing loss that started during childhood. Exploratory tympanotomy was performed due to suspicion of otosclerosis or middle ear anomalies. We found bilateral conductive hearing loss due to stapedial tendon ossification with a middle ear anomaly during surgery. There have been several reports of complete recovery of hearing after resection of the stapedial tendon. However, in this case, recovery of hearing was insufficient, even with the division of the stapedial tendon. In the second surgery, the stapes anomaly and footplate fixation were confirmed, and hearing was completely recovered after stapedotomy. Therefore, we report this case with a review of the relevant literature. CONCLUSION: This is the first case of stapedial tendon ossification and fixation of the footplate surgically diagnosed on both sides. With surgical treatment, successful results are expected.