BACKGROUND AND OBJECTIVES: Glomus tumor in the temporal bone arises from the paraganglia along the Jacobson's nerve. It has been proved to be the most common primary neoplasm of the middle ear. The aim of this study is to evaluate the clinical characteristics and the outcome of treatment among the patients with glomus tumor in the temporal bone. MATERIALS AND METHODS: From Dec. 1995 to Dec. 1998, six patients with glomus tumor underwent surgical removal at Asan Medical Center. The medical records were retrospectively reviewed with regard to sex, age, signs and symptoms, audiometric and radiologic evaluation, treatment modalities, and complications. RESULTS: This study group consists of 1 man and 5 women. Their ages ranged from 34 to 70, an average of 51.9 years old. Pulsatile tinnitus was the most common symptom. Five of 6 patients were positive for Brown's sign. The patients showed conductive hearing loss or mixed hearing loss with a mean air-bone gap of 29.2dB. The main feeding vessels for the glomus tumor were the ascending pharyngeal artery (67%), and the middle meningeal artery (33%). The treatment modalities were 1 transcanal approach, 4 posterior tympanotomy, and 1 subtotal petrosectomy. The postoperative complications consist of 1 case of wound infection, 1 case of facial palsy, and 2 cases of deafness. There was no recurrence. CONCLUSION: Glomus tumor has to be considered to differentiate the etiology of middle ear mass with pulsatile tinnitus. After embolization for feeding vessels, we could achieve complete removal of mass without severe bleeding.
Arteries ; Chungcheongnam-do ; Deafness ; Ear, Middle ; Facial Paralysis ; Female ; Glomus Tumor* ; Hearing Loss, Conductive ; Hearing Loss, Mixed Conductive-Sensorineural ; Hemorrhage ; Humans ; Medical Records ; Meningeal Arteries ; Postoperative Complications ; Recurrence ; Retrospective Studies ; Temporal Bone ; Tinnitus ; Wound Infection