[Contralateral ear in cholesteatoma]

The authors examine 224 contralateral files of patients suffering from cholesteatoma. They record that the systematic study of the opposite ear can prove to be of interest, given the numerous anomalies found. One ear in two has a contralateral pathology. In 32% of the cases, there is a retraction pocket, and in 14% a cholesteatoma. The mean time for a cholesteatoma to appear from a retraction pocket varies by 24 months in 44% of the cases, thus demonstrating the necessity of examining the opposite ear, as a dynamic evolution exists. Of these pockets, 2% in fact evolved, these statistics, to a true cholesteatoma.