Round Window Membrane in Serous and Purulent Otitis Media: Structural Study in the Rat

The rat was used as an animal model to reveal structural alterations in the round window membrane (RWM) during serous otitis media (SOM) and purulent otitis media (POM) over a 6-week period. Comparison of POM animals and control animals showed that the RWM in the former became almost six times as thick as that in controls, whereas that of SOM animals was twice as thick. The structural changes in the RWM in POM animals were confined mainly to the epithelium facing the middle ear cavity and the subepithelial space, which was invaded by inflammatory cells and exhibited dilated vessels. The normal flat epithelium was transformed via cuboidal cells to a cylindric epithelium containing both ciliated and goblet cells. In SOM animals, light microscopy revealed only minor changes in the RWM structure. Ultrastructurally, however, the connective tissue layer exhibited dense aggregations of collagen, increased numbers of fibroblasts, and, in one case, elastic fibers. This last phenomenon was not observed in either POM ears or normal ears. The study showed that various inflammatory conditions of the middle ear, both noninfectious (SOM) and infectious (POM), can cause different structural alterations of the RWM. These structural changes may influence passage through the RWM differently.