Repair of tympanic membrane perforation by topical application of 1% sodium hyaluronate

Objective: The administration of exogenous hyaluronic acid can increase the repair potential of damaged tissue. This study was conducted to verify whether or not the hyaluronic acid enhances the repair process in perforations of tympanic membrane. Hyaluronic acid is commercially available as its sodium salt. Study Design: Thirty patients with dry central perforations of small or medium size (up to 3 mm) were treated locally with 1% sodium hyaluronate. The applications were repeated weekly for a maximum of five applications. Results: It was found that treatment with sodium hyaluronate helps appreciably in the closure of tympanic membrane perforations and also that the scar formed in majority of them resembled the normal tympanic membrane. 86.67% (26/30) of the patients responded positively to the treatment. More importantly overall average percentage reduction in the size of perforations was 86.49%. Conclusions: It was concluded that topical application of 1% sodium hyaluronate can be an alternative to surgery in selected cases of tympanic membrane perforations.