Sensorineural Hearing Loss in Cholesteatoma

OBJECTIVE: To determine whether middle ear cholesteatoma is associated with, sensorineural hearing loss, and whether patient age, cholesteatoma growth pattern, or, air bone gap size contribute to inner ear impairment. STUDY DESIGN: Cross-sectional comparative. SETTING: A tertiary hospital. PATIENTS: The subjects were 115 patients with middle ear cholesteatoma in one ear, and normal video-otoscopy in the contralateral ear (CLE). INTERVENTIONS: Otoendoscopy, pure-tone audiometry. MAIN OUTCOME MEASURES: Bone conduction (BC) threshold differences between the normal CLE and the cholesteatoma ear. Comparisons of these differences between different cholesteatoma growth patterns. Correlation between the air bone gap size in the ear with cholesteatoma and the difference in bone conduction thresholds between both ears. RESULTS: The cholesteatoma ear was associated with greater BC thresholds than the CLE. With regard to different cholesteatoma growth patterns, the differences between associated BC thresholds were also significant in all groups at all frequencies, with the exception of the two routes of cholesteatoma group at 500 Hz. Comparing BC threshold differences, they were greater in the adult group at 500 Hz. The correlation between the air bone gap media in the ear with cholesteatoma and the difference in bone conduction thresholds between both ears was direct and moderate. CONCLUSION: Cholesteatoma was associated with greater BC thresholds at all frequencies tested. The differences were independent of cholesteatoma growth patterns. As bigger the air bone gap in the ear with cholesteatoma, greater the inner ear damage.