Tympanic membrane retraction the nose with laser or balloon dilatation is being evaluated as a potential treatment for tympanic membrane retraction. Excision of the retracted segment of an eardrum, with or without placement of a tympanostomy tube has been advocated. Healing of the area can result in a more normal eardrum. Laser therapy has been used to shrink and stiffen retraction pockets. Tympanoplasty is the surgical technique of removal of the retracted area from the middle ear and reconstruction of the tympanic membrane. Some surgeons use cartilage (taken from the outer ear) to stiffen the eardrum with the aim of preventing further retraction.
Common name in English, including “stone curlews”, so the choice of the name “thick-knees” is not easy to defend but is a clear illustration of the hazards of the facile coinage of terminology. For collective nouns for various subjects see a list of collective nouns (e.g. a flock of sheep, pack of wolves) Some organizations have created official lists of common names, or guidelines for creating common names, hoping to standardize the use of common names. For example, the Australian Fish Names List or AFNS was compiled through a process involving work by taxonomic and seafood industry experts, drafted using the CAAB