Learning Objectives: To evaluate the labyrinthine function of ears with cholesteatoma and observe differences between children and adults.

Introduction: Acquired cholesteatoma is an inflammatory condition of the middle ear that causes hearing loss and otorrhea. In our previous study, we had demonstrated that cholesteatoma may be associated to sensorineural hearing loss. Because of the inner ear damage, we hypothesize that cholesteatoma may be also associated to posterior labyrinth alterations.

Methods: Transversal, descriptive and comparative study. We included consecutive patients with cholesteatoma and no previous ear surgery. As control group, we included patients with ears without any alterations and normal audiometric thresholds. The patients were submitted to an ENT evaluation, digital videotoscopy and a video Head Impulse Test (v-HIT), to detect peripheral vestibular deficits through an objective measure of the vestibular ocular reflex (VOR) gains.

Results: The research group was constituted by 72 ears and the control group by 62 ears. When we analyzed the semicircular canals (SCC) through the v-HIT, we observed that the average gain of the lateral SCC of the research group was significantly lower than the average of the control group (p = 0,050). Regarding the age of the research group, we found in pediatric population a gain of VOR in the anterior SCC significantly lower when compared to the average of ears with cholesteatoma in adults (p = 0.037). When we analyzed only the pediatric group, we observed that ears with cholesteatoma had VOR gain significantly lower than normal ears in posterior SCC (p = 0,026).

Conclusions: Ears with cholesteatoma demonstrated a lower average gain of VOR than the control group in the three SCC. Considering the age, pediatric patients with cholesteatoma had more alterations in the labyrinthine evaluation than those over 18 years.