Cholesteatoma surgery with the canal wall up technique combined with mastoid obliteration: results from primary surgery in 230 consecutive cases.

OBJECTIVE: To evaluate the canal wall up (CWU) technique combined with mastoid obliteration used in cholesteatoma surgery from the aspects of safety and function.

STUDY DESIGN: Retrospective chart review. Information was extracted from a medical database and complementary data from patient files and audiograms were collected and recorded retrospectively.

SETTING: A tertiary-stage hospital and a secondary-stage hospital. Surgeons of various levels of experience.

METHOD: Data from a consecutive group of 230 primary operations for cholesteatoma surgery using CWU with obliteration employing the combined approach tympanoplasty (CAT) technique, from January 1994 to December 2009 were analyzed.

RESULTS: In 90% of the ears, the anatomy was normalized with an intact ear drum. The frequency of residual cholesteatoma was 1% and the frequency of recurrent cholesteatoma 8%. Hearing was improved one year postoperatively and remained improved three years postoperatively. No patient suffered a total hearing loss.

CONCLUSIONS: CWU procedure comprising CAT with obliteration of the mastoid is a safe surgical method with a low frequency of residual and recurrent disease and a good hearing preservation.