PRIMARY SKIN GRAFTING OF RADICAL MASTOIDECTOMY CAVITIES WITH THE BROWN ELECTRODERMATOME

THE IMPORTANT objective in the surgical treatment of chronic mastoiditis is the complete eradication of all infection, with the subsequent formation of a dry ear cavity. All too often, however, in spite of extensive surgery and careful postoperative care, a dry ear does not result. A postoperative course of several months in those cases of radical mastoidectomy in which eventually there is complete epithelization is often required—a period that is exhausting to the patient both economically and physically. Any method, then, that will increase the percentage of dry ears or shorten the postoperative time is of advantage to both the patient and the otolaryngologist. It is the purpose of this paper to summarize the literature on primary skin-grafting of cavities following radical mastoid operations and to call attention to a new instrument, the Brown Electrodermatome, and its value in mastoid surgery.

LITERATURE  A review of the literature of the last