Acquired cholesteatoma presenting as a pars squamosa temporal bone mass

Acquired cholesteatomas typically arise in the middle ear and mastoid cavities; they rarely present elsewhere. We describe a case of acquired cholesteatoma that presented as a large mass of the pars squamosa of the temporal bone in a 16-year-old girl. The mass was surgically removed without complication. To the best of our knowledge, this is only the second reported case of an acquired cholesteatoma in the lateral temporal bone.