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Case Reports
. 2014 Feb;40(1):43-7.
doi: 10.5125/jkaoms.2014.40.1.43. Epub 2014 Feb 25.

Eagle's syndrome: a case report

Chang-Sig Moon  1 , Baek-Soo Lee  1 , Yong-Dae Kwon  1 , Byung-Jun Choi  1 , Jung-Woo Lee  1 , Hyun-Woo Lee  1 , Sun-Ung Yun  1 , Joo-Young Ohe  1
Affiliations
Case Reports

Eagle's syndrome: a case report

Chang-Sig Moon et al. J Korean Assoc Oral Maxillofac Surg. 2014 Feb.

Abstract

Eagle's syndrome is a disease caused by an elongated styloid process or calcified stylohyoid ligament. Eagle defined the disorder in 1937 by describing clinical findings related to an elongated styloid process, which is one of the numerous causes of pain in the craniofacial and cervical region. The prevalence of individuals with this anatomic abnormality in the adult population is estimated to be 4% with 0.16% of these individuals reported to be symptomatic. Eagle's syndrome is usually characterized by neck, throat, or ear pain; pharyngeal foreign body sensation; dysphagia; pain upon head movement; and headache. The diagnosis of Eagle's syndrome must be made in association with data from the clinical history, physical examination, and imaging studies. Patients with increased symptom severity require surgical excision of the styloid process, which can be performed through an intraoral or an extraoral approach. Here, we report a rare case of stylohyoid ligament bilaterally elongated to more than 60 mm in a 51-year-old female. We did a surgery by extraoral approach and patient's symptom was improved.

Keywords: Eagle syndrome; Elongated styloid process.

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Conflict of interest statement

No potential conflict of interest relevant to this article was reported.

Figures

Fig. 1
Fig. 1
Panoramic view at the first visit shows calcification of both stylohyoid ligaments.
Fig. 2
Fig. 2
Lateral cephalometry & reverse Towne shows that both calcified stylohyoid ligaments come down to hyoid bone.
Fig. 3
Fig. 3
Cone-beam computed tomography shows that both calcified stylohyoid ligaments are more longer than 60 mm.
Fig. 4
Fig. 4
Clinical photographs were taken during operation. A. Right. B. Left.
Fig. 5
Fig. 5
Resected calcified stylohyoid ligament was more than 60 mm on right side.
Fig. 6
Fig. 6
Panoramic view after surgery shows that most of both calcified stylohyoid ligaments were removed.
Fig. 7
Fig. 7
Cone-beam computed tomography after surgery shows that both calcified stylohyoid ligaments were almost removed.
See this image and copyright information in PMC

References

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