Results of surgical treatment of pathology of the internal auditory canal

OBJECTIVE: To evaluate the pre-, intraoperative data and the results of surgical treatment of patients with the internal auditory canal (IAC) pathology. MATERIAL AND METHODS: Preoperative pure tone audiometry, CT scans of the temporal bones and MRI scans of the cerebellopontine angles (CPA) and brain, intraoperative data, as well as postoperative results were analyzed in 92 patients with IAC pathology, who underwent surgery at the National Medical Research Center of Otorhinolaryngology of FMBA, Russian Federation. All patients were divided into two groups: 1) with true lesions of the IAC structures; 2) with pathology of the temporal bone, involving the IAC from the outside. RESULTS: =9, 9.8%), in 7 cases that required surgical correction. CONCLUSION: Destructive processes of the temporal bone with spread to the IAC are associated with a higher risk of facial dysfunction and deafness at the preoperative stage than with true pathology of the temporal bone. Patients with a short duration of facial muscles paralysis can be successfully rehabilitated during the removal of the pathological process by translabyrinthine approach. True intracanalicular IAC pathology usually manifests by milder symptoms and in some cases can be effectively removed by MCF approach with the preservation of auditory function; wait-and-scan protocol is an alternative in such cases. Large IAC and CPA pathology with compression of the brainstem is an indication for surgical treatment, which, however, is associated with perioperative complications and requires appropriate training of surgical and reanimation teams.