A cholesteatoma is a skin growth that occurs in an abnormal location inside the middle ear behind the eardrum. Ear canal skin "sheds" just like the skin in any other part of the body; cholesteatomas often take the form of a cyst or pouch lined by ear canal skin. This collects the layers of shed old skin and builds up inside the ear. Over time the cholesteatoma can increase in size or become infected and destroy the surrounding delicate bones of the middle ear. Hearing loss, dizziness, and facial muscle paralysis are rare, but can result from continued cholesteatoma growth.

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