Abstract
We analyzed the clinical features, surgical treatment and surgical results of petrous cholesteatomas in 20 patients (20 ears) who underwent surgery at the Jikei University Hospital. The area of the cholesteatoma was classified according to Prof. Sanna's classification into the massive type in eleven cases, the supralabyrinthine type in eight cases and the infralabyrinthine type in one case. Hearing preservation surgery was performed in eleven patients via the middle cranial fossa approach, by the partial labyrinthectomy or infracochlear approach, and the results seemed satisfactory. These results suggested that hearing preservation surgery should be adopted in every case.