Cholesteatoma of the Maxillary Sinus

Abstract

Abstract
Cholesteatoma is a relatively common pathology in the middle ears and mastoid cavity, but is a rare disease for the paranasal sinuses, especially in the maxillary sinus. The cholesteatoma of the paranasal sinus should be considered in the differential diagnosis of slowly expanding lesions of the sinuses and is difficult to distinguish from paranasal sinus malignancy. The author describes a rare case of cholesteatoma in the maxillary sinus of an elderly woman presenting swelling at hard palate over 3 months. The swelling began at the right side hard palate and gradually enlarged over 2 months. She had right side facial swelling and nasal obstruction. Several biopsies were performed under local anesthesia using the transnasal, sinuscope and sublabial approaches (Caldwell-luc). The last histopathological report showed consistency with cholesteatoma. The patient was operated by medial maxillectomy and complete tumor removal. The patient experienced disease free survival about 18 months and afterwards she died from cerebrovascular disease. This is the second case in Asia and first case reported in Southeast Asia.