A Large Intratemporal Facial Nerve Schwannoma Presenting as an Occluding External Auditory Canal Mass

xlomafota13 shared this article with you from Inoreader A Large Intratemporal Facial Nerve Schwannoma Presenting as an Occluding External Auditory Canal Mass Via ear nose throat Ear Nose Throat J. 2021 May 11:1455613211016706. doi: 10.1177/01455613211016706. Online ahead of print. ABSTRACT Facial nerve schwannomas are rare, benign, slow-growing tumors that can occur in any segment of the facial nerve, although 71% of cases are intratemporal. Surgical resection can lead to facial nerve injury. Facial function recovery after reanimation is usually not better than House-Brackmann (HB) grade III. Thus, for cases of intratemporal facial nerve schwannomas (IFNSs) with favorable facial function (HB grade I or II), observation by periodic magnetic resonance imaging is the mainstay of management. Here, we present a case of a large IFNS with normal facial function in which the mass fully occluded the external auditory canal. The occlusion caused squamous debris to accumulate, potentially leading to cholesteatoma. Faced with this therapeutic dilemma, we chose surgical resection with the patient's informed consent. Stripping surgery was achieved with normal postoperative facial function. There was no postoperative facial paralysis or recurrence at 2-year follow-up. We describe the experience of diagnosis and treatment process for this case, and discuss the possibility of total resection of the tumor with preserving the integrity of facial nerve. PMID:33973479 | DOI:10.1177/01455613211016706 View on the web Inoreader. Take back control of your news feed. Follow us on Twitter and Facebook.