Alajmi, N., Arafat, A., Aloqaili, Y. (2019). Prognosis and Outcomes of Pneumolabyrinth Following an Otic-Capsule Violating Fracture: A Case Report. Egyptian Journal of Ear, Nose, Throat and Allied Sciences, 20(1), 31-34. doi: 10.21608/ejentas.2019.6066.1058
Norah Salem Alajmi; Abdullah Arafat; Yazeed Aloqaili. "Prognosis and Outcomes of Pneumolabyrinth Following an Otic-Capsule Violating Fracture: A Case Report". Egyptian Journal of Ear, Nose, Throat and Allied Sciences, 20, 1, 2019, 31-34. doi: 10.21608/ejentas.2019.6066.1058
Alajmi, N., Arafat, A., Aloqaili, Y. (2019). 'Prognosis and Outcomes of Pneumolabyrinth Following an Otic-Capsule Violating Fracture: A Case Report', Egyptian Journal of Ear, Nose, Throat and Allied Sciences, 20(1), pp. 31-34. doi: 10.21608/ejentas.2019.6066.1058
Alajmi, N., Arafat, A., Aloqaili, Y. Prognosis and Outcomes of Pneumolabyrinth Following an Otic-Capsule Violating Fracture: A Case Report. Egyptian Journal of Ear, Nose, Throat and Allied Sciences, 2019; 20(1): 31-34. doi: 10.21608/ejentas.2019.6066.1058
Prognosis and Outcomes of Pneumolabyrinth Following an Otic-Capsule Violating Fracture: A Case Report
1King Saud bin Abdulaziz University for Health Science
2Otolaryngology Head & Neck Surgery Department King Abdulaziz Medical City, Saudi Arabia
Abstract
Background: Pneumolabyrinth consequent to a temporal bone fracture is a rare entity. It occurs when air enters the vestibulocochlear system due to a pathological communication between the middle and the inner ears. The diagnosis is usually confirmed radiologically using high-resolution computed tomography imaging. Pneumolabyrinth is categorized radiologically as follows: vestibular pneumolabyrinth, cochlear pneumolabyrinth and combined pneumolabyrinth. Case Presentation: We herein describe the clinical presentation and management of pneumolabyrinth in a 43-year-old man, following an otic capsule-violating temporal bone fracture. After initially caring for the patient conservatively, without improvement, surgical intervention was undertaken. Unfortunately, hearing was irrecoverable. Conclusion: Delaying medical and surgical intervention and the location of the air bubbles associated with the combined type contribute to the irrecoverable loss of hearing. As otic capsule-violating fractures might not be observed initially on brain CT scans, high-resolution and thin-slice CT scans of the temporal bone is crucial when suspecting temporal bone fracture.