Frequency and Distribution of Complications in Cholesteatoma Patients: A Tertiary Care Hospital Study

Abstract

Background: Cholesteatoma, a benign epithelial lesion, progresses with time, necessitating surgical intervention. The most common surgical treatments are canal wall up (CWU) and canal wall down (CWD). CWU, though preserving ear canal anatomy, has a higher risk of recurrence, prompting a need to evaluate the frequency and nature of complications arising from cholesteatoma to improve treatment outcomes. Objective: This study aims to identify the frequency and types of complications in patients diagnosed with cholesteatoma at a tertiary care hospital. Methods: Conducted as a cross-sectional analysis at the Department of ENT, Jinnah Postgraduate Medical Centre, Karachi, from August 10, 2019, to February 9, 2020, this study included 210 diagnosed patients. Through otoscopy, audiologic evaluations, and microscope examinations for selected cases, patients with signs of persistent disease underwent mastoid exploration. Surgical interventions were tailored based on disease extent and type. Statistical analysis employed descriptive statistics, stratification, and Chi-square tests for significance (P-value ≤0.05). Results: Of the participants, 57.6% were male, and 42.4% were female, with an average age of 31.30±8.75 years and a mean disease duration of 8.73±3.63 months. Extracranial complications were identified in 29% of patients, with 12.4% experiencing ossicular damage. Intracranial complications were found in 18.1% of patients, with meningitis constituting 8.6% of these cases. A total of 5.7% presented with multiple complications. No significant associations were found between the complications and variables such as gender, age, BMI, and disease duration. Conclusion: Extracranial complications, notably ossicular damage, were most common, followed by intracranial complications and multiple complications, underlining the necessity for early diagnosis and targeted treatment strategies.