The bone-anchored hearing aid and bone-anchored epithesis for congenital ear malformations.

Surgery for correction of aural atresia was performed on 156 ears in 111 patients. A comparison was made between plastic surgery for auricular reconstruction and the bone-anchored epithesis. Another comparison was performed between hearing improvement after reconstructive surgery for meatal and middle ear atresia and the bone-anchored hearing aid. It was found that the bone-anchored epithesis is an excellent alternative to plastic reconstructive surgery of the auricle. The bone-anchored hearing aid could be considered as a strong alternative to surgery in patients with meatal and middle ear atresia--especially in patients with advanced malformations. Neither the bone-anchored epithesis nor the bone-anchored hearing aid excludes the patient from reconstructive surgery later in life.