Otolaryngology--head and neck surgery : official journal of American Academy of Otolaryngology-Head and Neck Surgery
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Otolaryngol Head Neck Surg · Jun 1986
A review of twenty congenital cholesteatomas of the middle ear in children.
Cholesteatomas, arising within the middle ear space behind an intact tympanic membrane, have been detected more frequently in recent years. This article reviews 19 children (with a mean age of 4.3 years) who underwent surgery over a 7-year period for removal of cholesteatomas from behind intact tympanic membranes. Most of these children were referred by pediatricians who had detected an asymptomatic whitish middle ear mass. ⋯ The results of surgery are reviewed. The possible origins of these localized cholesteatomas are considered. Are they congenital defects that arise from misplaced keratinizing epithelium? Do they arise from mesenchymal cells whose differentiation is stimulated by inflammatory changes within the middle ear?