Conclusion:

In this study, a large cohort of patients was reviewed, with a one-year follow-up and with an identical surgical technique (underlay tragal cartilage). We emphasise that, specifically in the child, success after tympanic perforation surgery should be assessed in the long-run, with a follow-up of at least one year for all patients, and should not only focus on TM closure but also include the general aspect of the TM and audiometric outcome. Our results tend to show that tympanic closure should be best performed at the age of eight or older and that myringitis is the most common long-term complication (5 to 9%). Eustachian tube malfunction in the younger child seems to increase the risk not only of tympanic closure failure, but also subsequent cholesteatoma, retraction or OME. Due to the high success rate after tympanoplasty for perforation in the child (80-90%), very large prospective and multicentric studies are necessary to better identify risk factors and the indications of different techniques (cartilage or fascia grafts, underlay, overlay, butterfly, fat plug, etc.).