An all-in-one tympanostomy tube insertion device: results of usability testing in fourteen cadaveric and twelve plastic model ears

A core outcome set for research on the management of otitis media with effusion in otherwise-healthy children

INTRODUCTION

A Core Outcome Set (COS) is an agreed list of outcome domains to be reported by all studies investigating a condition. A COS for Otitis Media with Effusion (OME) in children with cleft palate exists (called MOMENT), but there isn't one for otherwise-healthy children. This study investigates whether the MOMENT COS could also be applicable to otherwise-healthy children.

METHODS

A long list of potential outcomes was generated (independently of MOMENT) via three methods: literature review to establish which outcomes are reported by OME studies, a review of outcomes contained in OME questionnaires, and a focus group asking parents of children with OME what matters to them. The long list drawn up using these sources identified no outcomes additional to ones in the MOMENT long list. An online questionnaire was subsequently undertaken, asking parents/guardians and professionals/researchers whether they think that the MOMENT final list outcomes would also be applicable to otherwise healthy children.

RESULTS

A total of 134 people took part: 53 parents/guardians (recruited through UK NHS hospitals) and 81 professionals/researchers (recruited internationally). Overall, 128 (95.5%) agreed that the MOMENT outcomes can also apply to otherwise healthy children (100% parents/guardians, 92.6% professionals/researchers).

CONCLUSIONS

The outcome domains identified in the COS for OME management in children with cleft palate can also be used in otherwise-healthy children.

Tympanostomy Tube Innovation: Advances in Device Material, Design, and Office-Based Technology

OBJECTIVES

With tympanostomy tube insertion remaining the most common procedure performed in children to date, growing interests in minimizing both procedural costs and anesthetic exposure in the pediatric population have inspired innovation with respect to tympanostomy tubes. As such, we aim to discuss the current state of tympanostomy tube innovation including insertion devices, tube material, and design.

METHODS

Computerized literature review.

RESULTS

(1) Numerous single-use devices consisting of a myringotomy knife and preloaded tympanostomy tube offer potential advantages of decreasing or eliminating operating room time and may be performed under moderate instead of a general anesthetic. (2) Innovation with respect to tympanostomy tube material and design may offer enhanced ototopical drug delivery, decreased rates of tube occlusion, and/or the ability to dissolve "on-command" with application of a novel ototopical material. (3) These technologies currently remain in various phases of preclinical and clinical testing.

CONCLUSIONS

While clinical testing for a number of new technologies is preliminary and ongoing, tympanostomy tube-related innovations hold exciting promise to supplement or potentially replace the present-day armamentarium of tympanostomy tube design and insertion moving forward.