[The relevance of Choukroun's Platelet-Rich Fibrin (PRF) during middle ear surgery: preliminary results].

OBJECTIVES: To evaluate the relevance of Leucocyte- and Platelet-Rich Fibrin (L-PRF, Choukroun's technique) Concentrates during tympanoplasty.

MATERIALS AND METHODS: 152 myringoplasties (including 2 cases with bilateral tympanic perforations) were treated by the senior surgeon in 150 patients, 63 women and 87 males aged between 25 and 55-years-old, between december 2004 and june 2008. These patients showed non marginal tympanic perforations, sized from punctiform to subtotal. For the smallest perforations, a PRF cylinder was used alone to fill the perforation without preparing a tympanomeatus flap (Champagne plug technique). For perforations largest than the third of the tympanic surface, temporal aponeurosis graft in underlay was preferred, and optimized by the lateral application of a PRF membrane (hamburger technique).

RESULTS: 6 failures were recorded in this case series, with tympans showing residual microperforations, after a minimum follow-up of 6 months. The success rate was thus close to 96%. The mean success rate without PRF is normally 85%. All failures were recorded on large non marginal lesions.

CONCLUSION: PRF will never save an inadequate surgical procedure, but it offers both mechanical and inflammatory protection to the tympanic graft and accelerates cell proliferation and matrix remodelling. Moreover, this autologous biomaterial induces no undesirable tissue reaction, is easy, quick and cheap to produce and is easily manipulated during the surgical procedure. It seems a precious help for the otologist, in order to improve tympanic healing. PRF potential applications in the middle-ear surgery seem numerous.