Middle fossa craniotomy (MFC) with exposure of the internal auditory canal and/or petrous apex (anterior petrosectomy) is an uncommon operation in the pediatric population. We report our institution's experience and surgical outcomes with pediatric MFC.
This institutional case series provides descriptive outcome data for a rare pediatric procedure; no actionable change to standard practice is warranted without larger controlled data.
Pediatric lateral skull base tumors are rare and technically demanding; pooling institutional outcomes helps establish benchmarks for surgical decision-making and counseling.
- 01Retrospective institutional review of pediatric middle fossa craniotomy for lateral skull base tumors.
- 02Procedures included exposure of the internal auditory canal and/or petrous apex.
- 03Outcomes data may inform surgical planning and risk counseling for this rare pediatric population.
- 04Evidence is limited to a single institution's experience with no control group.
- 05Findings are relevant to neurotologists and pediatric skull base surgeons.
Pediatric middle fossa craniotomy can be performed with documented surgical outcomes at an institutional level.
studypartially supported- PMID
- 42431074
- DOI
- 10.1016/j.ijporl.2026.112925.
- Journal
- International Journal of Pediatric Otorhinolaryngology
- Publication type
- research_article
- Evidence level
- 4
- Population
- Pediatric patients undergoing middle fossa craniotomy for lateral skull base tumors
- Intervention
- Middle fossa craniotomy with exposure of internal auditory canal and/or petrous apex
Primary outcomes
Surgical outcomes; Perioperative and postoperative complications