Is Mastoid Pressure Dressing Necessary?

Abstract

Objective: Assess whether mastoid pressure dressing is necessary after ear surgery to prevent complications such as hematoma or protruding ear.

Method: Thirty-seven patients were included in the study. Of the 37 patients, 17 were in the mastoid dressing group and 20 were in the no-mastoid dressing group. We measured the distance from mastoid scalp to helix rim at the most posterior level of upper auricular rim in the operated and non-operated ears.

Results: For mastoid to helix distance of the operated ears of the patients, there was no statistically significant difference between the mastoid dressing group and the no-mastoid dressing group. We found a significant difference for the measured distance between operated and nonoperated ears of the mastoid dressing group, the mean value of distance in the operated ears being lower than that in the nonoperated ones (P > .05).

Conclusion: This study showed that mastoid to helix distance did not change significantly when the mastoid dressing was not applied, while mastoid dressing seemed to decrease the mastoid-to-helix distance. For his reason, the application of a mastoid pressure dressing following ear surgery seems to be unnecessary and may contribute to increased wound morbidity.