Otitis media is the most common middle ear disease,caused by a bacterial or viral infection. It can be divided into 4 types in the clinical: secretory otitis media, suppurative otitis media, middle ear cholesteatoma, and special type of otitis media. Middle ear cholesteatoma is a common chronic middle ear disease in otorhinolaryngology, long-term discharging ear canal and tympanic membrane perforation, hearing loss as its main characteristics. It is invasive to the surrounding tissue, which can cause middle ear acoustic structure destruction and bone absorption easily. It can also cause paralysis, labyrinthine inflammation, retroauri cular subperiosteal abscess, a variety of extracranial and intracranial complications. The etiology and pathogenesis of cholesteatoma is very complex,and the curative effect for the treatment is controversial. In this paper, the etiology, pathogenesis and treatment of cholesteatoma in recent years will be reviewed.

Middle Ear; Cholesteatoma