Cholesteatoma: Anyone else want to talk?

Hi @genuinekim, welcome to Connect. I'm tagging @funkynotes who has also talked about cholesteatoma.
Kim, has your hearing loss changed since the recurrence and surgery last year? Did or do you also experience balance issues?

Yes to both. After my first two surgeries I had a about a 40% loss in my effected ear. My most recent audio test showed a 89% loss. The reoccurrence destroyed a portion of the mastoid bone and left horizontal canal fistula,

Hey there. I had my first cholesteatoma removed in 1996 in my left ear along with ossicukar chain reconstruction. In 2014 I had a cholesteatoma removed from my right ear, and again in 2016 in my righ ear along with ossicular chain reconstruction. In 2018 had another removal from my left ear. Now last week I had the titanium implant that was put in, in 1997, removed and a cartilage one put in. 4 surgeries in 5 years. I hope I'm done for awhile now.

Hi @angiee, welcome to Connect. Wow, 4 surgeries in 5 years. I bet you have seen the last of surgeries for some time. Can you tell me more about the titanium implant that you had done last week? How is the recovery going?

Hi @colleenyoung ! Fingers crossed that the surgeries are done for now. 🙂 I actually had the titanium implant removed (it was put in, in 1997) and had it replaced with a cartilage prosthesis. Recovery is going good. I've got to remember not to overdo it and listen to my body. I was frustrated that I was too tired and worn out and not able to do anything around the house, BUT then I remembered that it had only been a week since surgery. Lol I sneeze and it's uncomfortable, I laugh or turn my head too quickly to the side and I'm reminded that yep... housework can wait! I am heading back to work today for a few hours. Going to do that a few days this week to get back in the swing of things. (Family owned men's retail store.. where my dad is my "boss" and brother is the manager. ) I was told I can just sit and not wait on customers, but help with other things that need attention asap. So.. off I go. Thanks for asking about recovery!

Did you have the fistula repaired?

I had a cholesteatoma removed in 2005 in my left ear due to ear infections and perforations.The Dr claims the air conduction hearing loss in that ear is not the result of the surgery. I still connect the two though because the surgery and hearing loss happened so close together. My ear drum is deformed from T-tubes and surgeries. I've had three doctors give me the same opinion that ossicular chain reconstruction would not give me substantial improvement to warrant the surgery. I would be eligible for a cochlear implant if my word recognition was worse in my "good" ear. I don't have balance issues.

@angiee I just found you on this site as I was looking for something else. I am stunned by everything you have been through. When we adopted our son Yu Xia at age 6 from an orphanage in China he was deaf in one ear, had cleft lip and palate, and weighed only 25 pounds. He had many surgeries in Boston, one of which was for a rapidly growing cholesteatoma which would have killed him had they not discovered it when doing a mastoid surgery. His last surgery was at Tufts when he was in his early 20’s. Yu Xia is 30 now, and I worry about him constantly as he is pretty much non verbal so we don’t know how he feels. He lives on his own now as well. He refused his hearing aids and FM unit as a teen. He had a full ride to UCONN school of engineering but gave up somewhere along the line, and we were helpless to help him. God knows we tried! It is hard to argue with someone who doesn’t speak. We think he has late onset autism, but he was never diagnosed. Can you tell me if cholesteatoma grows back? I am guessing yes.?? Symptoms? The doctors in Boston had told us they got it all, and they were fantastic. Also, what is this titanium implant for? Thank you so much for wading through this, and thank you in advance for any info. God bless you real well! irene5

Hi @irene5, I'm sure you've search the Internet thoroughly. None-the-less, I thought I'd post this article about cholesteatoma from Healthline:
Cholesteatoma: Causes, Symptoms, and Diagnosis https://www.healthline.com/health/cholesteatoma

According to the article, cholesteatomas can return and it is important to catch a regrowing cyst early. I'm also @genuinekim and @judysmayo to get their experiences about recurrence and symptoms they experienced.

Irene, does your son or is your able to tell you when he is not well or is experiencing early symptoms like the ear draining a foul smellng fluid or pressure in the ear?

Thank you Juli. Yu Xia will tell us when he is in pain, but he has no sense of smell. I will check on that. Irene