We report a rare case of traumatic facial palsy and ossicular disruption induced by earpick injury.
A 5-year-old female child was brought to our hospital with right facial palsy that had developed after right ear trauma caused by an ear pick. Otoscopic examination showed perforation of the right tympanic membrane and pure-tone audiometry revealed mixed moderate hearing loss in the right ear. The Yanagihara facial nerve grading score was 12/40. Computed tomography showed malleus-incus joint disruption. Since traumatic immediate facial palsy and ossicular disruption were suspected, exploratory tympanotomy was performed by transcanal endoscopic ear surgery (TEES) on the first visit day. TEES revealed facial bone fracture in the horizontal portion and disruption of the incus. The bone fragment around the facial canal was removed, followed by placement of sponzel with a steroid. A type III tympanoplasty was performed with the columella of the auricular cartilage, and the patient showed almost complete recovery of the facial palsy as well as hearing after the surgery.
TEES was effective for treating traumatic facial palsy and ossicular disruption caused by earpick injury.
