What treatment option may be required for tympanic membrane (TM) perforations?

Tympanoplasty is a surgical procedure specifically designed to repair a perforated tympanic membrane (TM) and is commonly employed to restore its integrity and improve hearing. When a perforation occurs in the TM due to factors such as infection, trauma, or chronic ear disease, the main goals of tympanoplasty are to close the hole in the membrane and reconstruct any associated structures in the middle ear if necessary. Successful tympanoplasty can lead to an improvement in patients' auditory function and help prevent recurrent ear infections that can occur as a result of the perforation.

Other treatment options like earwax removal, while important in certain contexts, would not address the underlying issue of a TM perforation. Antibiotic therapy may be used to treat infections associated with the perforation, but it does not repair the TM itself. Otoplasty is a surgical procedure related to pinning back protruding ears and is unrelated to tympanic membrane issues. Thus, tympanoplasty stands out as the necessary intervention for addressing TM perforations effectively.