Will antibiotics or ear drops clear up cholesteatoma?
In almost all cases, surgery is necessary to remove the disease. Occasionally, enough of the cholesteatoma debris can be removed in the office with periodic cleaning of the ear to control the disease. However, this approach is generally used in patients who cannot undergo cholesteatoma surgery. What if cholesteatoma surgery is not performed? The cholesteatoma will usually grow or expand if not removed. With this growth, there is further destruction of the ear structures. The patient is at risk for further infections, which in some cases, can be quite severe (such as mastoiditis or meningitis.) However, it is generally not necessary to remove cholesteatomas on an urgent basis. How is cholesteatoma surgery performed? To have an understanding of cholesteatoma surgery, some terms should be defined: Tympanoplasty: Surgery that involves the tympanum (middle ear). The tympanum is the area of the ear behind the ear drum where the bones of hearing (ossicles) are located. Mastoidectomy: Surgery
