title: Congenital cholesteatoma of the middle ear--uncommon clinical presentation.
abstract: BACKGROUND
  Congenital cholesteatoma of the middle ear is un uncommon and yet not well-defined disease. Only few cases of cholesteatoma in thefossa ovalis with unusual clinical presentation have been reported in medical literature.
  
  
  METHODS
  We reported a 16-year-old girl with congenital cholesteatoma in the fossa ovalis with minimal clinical presentation. A small mass was found occluding the fossa ovalis and mimicking otosclerotic process within tympanic cavity. The operation started as stapedotomy, and when the process was confirmed it converted to mastoidectomy via the retroauricular approach.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  The diagnosis of congenital cholesteatoma in children should always be considered, even if the clinical symptoms imitate other ear disorders, in our case otosclerosis.
authors.forename: Bojana
authors.initials: B
authors.lastname: Bukurov
authors.forename: Borivoj
authors.initials: B
authors.lastname: Babić
authors.forename: Milovan
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Dimitrijević
authors.forename: Miljan
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Folić
authors.forename: Nenad
authors.initials: N
authors.lastname: Arsović
mesh_terms: D000293:Adolescent; D002781:Cholesteatoma / Q000151:congenital* / Q000175:diagnosis / Q000601:surgery; D018424:Cholesteatoma, Middle Ear / Q000175:diagnosis* / Q000601:surgery*; D003937:Diagnosis, Differential; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans