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Case Reports
. 2011 Feb 15;3(1):45-7.
doi: 10.1159/000324179.

Gradenigo's Syndrome: Beyond the Classical Triad of Diplopia, Facial Pain and Otorrhea

José Luiz Pedroso  1 , Camila Catherine Henriques de Aquino, Agessandro Abrahão, Ricardo Araújo de Oliveira, Lauro Figueira Pinto, Márcio Luis Escórcio Bezerra, Antonio Beuttenmuller Gonçalves Silva, Francisca Delanie Bulcão de Macedo, Ana Valéria de Melo Mendes, Orlando Graziani Povoas Barsottini
Affiliations
Case Reports

Gradenigo's Syndrome: Beyond the Classical Triad of Diplopia, Facial Pain and Otorrhea

José Luiz Pedroso et al. Case Rep Neurol. .

Abstract

We report a case of a non-Hodgkin's lymphoma in a young woman presenting with an abdominal mass and an unusual instance of cranial nerve palsies mimicking Gradenigo's syndrome. This condition is characterized by a triad of otorrhea, facial pain and diplopia, related to otitis media in the pre-antibiotic era. Incomplete and atypical clinical features of Gradenigo's syndrome have been described and noninfectious causes may mimic this condition. Careful clinical history and physical examination, including neuroimaging, are necessary to make a differential diagnosis.

Keywords: Cranial neuropathy; Gradenigo's syndrome; Non-Hodgkin's lymphoma; Petrositis.

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Figures

Fig. 1
Fig. 1
Irregular solid mass (arrowhead) in the posterior nasopharyngeal space and petrous apex (∗) bilaterally with heterogeneous signal in T1-weighted (a) and T2-weighted (c) axial MRI images. A prominent nonhomogeneous gadolinium enhancement is also observed (b).
See this image and copyright information in PMC

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