A unique pediatric case of intratumoral hemorrhage in a sporadic vestibular schwannoma

Abstract

Vestibular schwannomas (VSs) are tumors that commonly occur in the eighth cranial nerve. They are usually associated with type 2 neurofibromatosis. They are uncommon in children, and sporadic cases of pediatric VS are even rarer. In general, VSs are benign lesions with less than 1% chance of intratumoral hemorrhage. Adult cases of hemorrhage in VS are well documented. We present the first pediatric case of intratumoral hemorrhage in VS in the absence of any features of NF in an 11-year-old child who complained of holocranial headache and sensorineural hearing loss in the left ear. We further discuss the pathogenesis and clinical features, and review the literature of intratumoral hemorrhage in patients of VS.