Patients with Eustachian tube dysfunction(ETD) have difficulty equilibrating their middle ears to external pressures. Mild ETD can cause chronic ear fullness as well as discomfort when driving, swimming underwater or any other changes in barometric pressure. More severe ETD can cause chronic middle ear fluid (effusions), conductive hearing loss and recurrent ear infections (otitis media). Tympanostomy tubes can sometimes help to ameliorate these issues, but they are temporary and have down-sides such as the need to keep the ear dry and the risk of long-term tympanic membrane perforation.

AERA® is an exciting new product for the surgical treatment of patients with ETD. AERA® is a balloon dilation system designed for the dilation of the Eustachian tube for treatment of persistent ETD in adult patients.

Dr’s Dubin and Reh perform this procedure on patients with objective evidence of ETD such as chronic conductive hearing loss and middle ear fluid.