Facial Nerve Palsy After Ear Infection: A Case Report

Abstract

Introduction:The incidence of acute mastoiditis, a common complication of otitis media, has significantly decreased with the emergence of antibiotic therapy [1]. Classical symptoms of acute mastoiditis include fever, irritability, otalgia, swelling of the mastoid area, and retroauricular erythema [2]. Delay in appropriate antibiotic treatment of mastoiditis may lead to intracranial and extracranial complications. Facial nerve paralysis is a rare complication of otomastoiditis with different pathophysiologic mechanisms postulated [3]. Extensive literature search showed cases of lower motor neuron involvement of the facial nerve in affected patients. We report an unusual case of mastoiditis without fever complicated by epidural abscess and upper motor neuron facial nerve palsy in a previously healthy adolescent.

Epidemiologic, Imaging, and Clinical Issues in Bezold’s Abscess: A Systematic Review

“…However, this strict classification might not be appropriate in case of neck anatomy variants, erroneous identification of suppurative diffusion processes or coexistence of multiple paths. In fact, literature reports cases of Bezold's abscess concomitant to subperiosteal empyema [22,30,38,[46][47][48][49], occurring after mastoid surgery (i.e., consistent with a postoperative complication [24]) or spreading into the occipital region [50,51]. A spread to retro-parapharyngeal spaces has also been described in literature [8,32,34,42,52].…”