The history of intratympanic drug therapy in otology.

The application of drugs through the eardrum and into the middle ear to treat various otologic disorders has recently gained wide-spread popularity. Despite the relatively recent interest in this technique, if one considers any application of medication into the middle ear as intratympanic therapy, the roots of this method can really be considered to date back to antiquity. This article presents the development of intratympanic drug therapy from early times through the nineteenth century.