Aural fullness and transtympanic ventilation tubes in Ménière's disease: a scoping review

Background: Ménière’s Disease (MD) often presents with aural fullness, for reasons that are currently not well understood. Insertion of transtympanic ventilation tubes (VTs) has been historically used for the management of this symptom, though the nature and mechanism of effectiveness is unclear. Objectives: To give an overview of the data available on the effects of VT insertion on aural fullness in MD. Methods: The databases PubMed, EMBASE, Medline, SCOPUS, Web of Science, CENTRAL and Google Scholar were searched to identify relevant records. Records were subsequently analysed and data extracted. Results: Only two studies directly measured the effect of VT insertion on aural fullness, while three others measured it as a placebo to another treatment. Considerable heterogeneity was found among the studies, including conflicting conclusions. Conclusions: There is a paucity of evidence investigating the effect of grommet insertion on aural fullness in MD. This work directs future research into this topic