Clinical outcomes of lateral ear canal resection performed in routine clinical practice for chronic otitis externa in dogs: a retrospective descriptive study of 58 ears (2016-2025).

Lateral ear canal resection is effective for managing chronic canine otitis externa in primary care practice.

This retrospective descriptive study evaluated long-term clinical outcomes of lateral ear canal resection (LECR) in 40 dogs (58 ears) with chronic otitis externa performed at a primary care facility between 2016-2025. Over a median follow-up of 952 days, no cases progressed to end-stage ear canal disease or required conversion to total ear canal ablation with lateral bulla osteotomy. Annual ear-cleaning frequency decreased significantly from a median of 6.74 to 1.58 times yearly post-surgery. Postoperative pruritus scores improved from 100% preoperatively to 20% at final assessment. Owner satisfaction exceeded 3.89 out of 5 across all quality metrics. No serious postoperative complications occurred. The findings suggest LECR performed before advanced canal pathology develops can effectively suppress disease progression and improve long-term manageability. Notably, the procedure was successfully performed by non-specialist surgeons using routine equipment in a primary care setting, challenging the notion that LECR requires specialist credentials and potentially offering an earlier intervention point in disease management to prevent progression to more extensive ablative procedures.

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