Bilateral spontaneous symptomatic temporomandibular joint herniation into the external auditory canal: A case report and literature review

Abstract

Spontaneous temporomandibular joint (TMJ) herniation is the entity of protrusion of the retrodiscal contents of the TMJ into the external auditory canal (EAC) through a persistent Huschke's foramen. There have been a number of reports of spontaneous TMJ herniation, but there are no reports of bilateral symptomatic TMJ herniation. We report a case of a 70-year-old man who complained of a crunching sound in both ears during mastication. Examination showed bulging from the anterosuperior wall of the EAC on each side when the patient opened his mouth, which pushed the tympanic membrane medially. Bony defects in the corresponding area were seen on computed tomography. We describe a very rare case of bilateral spontaneous TMJ herniation that caused symptoms by having a direct impact on the tympanic membrane.

Keywords: Bilateral; External auditory canal; Herniation; Huschke’s foramen; Temporomandibular joint.