Vol.101 No.3 contentsPRACTICA OTO-RHINO-LARYNGOLOGICA
Vol. 101 No. 3 March 2008
A Case of Slow-Growing Glomus Tympanicum Tumor
Tomoyuki Hoshino, Mariko Matsumoto and Mikino Kikura
(ENT Surgicenter Hamamatsu)
Akira Kodama
(Ohmi-hachiman City)
A slow glowing glomus tympanicum tumor was found and surgically removed in a 69-year-old man. He initially consulted an ENT clinic complaining of fullness of the ear and tinnitus in 1997. Red tinge of the eardrum caused by an intratympanic tumor was noted at that time. Though the signs and symptoms had not deteriorated, the patient was referred to our clinic on suspicion of the glomus tumor 8 years later in 2005. A soft tissue density mass measuring 2.5 mm was found on the promontory on 2 mm thick axial CT image but hearing and tympanometry remained normal. In April 2006, the tumor was successfully removed from the promontory without any residual complications. Histological and immuno-histochemical study confirmed the diagnosis. The natural history and the growth rate of the tumor are discussed.
Key words :small glomus tympanicum tumor, growth, natural history