Glial heterotopia of the middle ear

R Quatre; A Baguant; H Gil; S Schmerber

doi:10.1016/j.anorl.2020.01.017

Glial heterotopia of the middle ear

Eur Ann Otorhinolaryngol Head Neck Dis. 2020 May;137(3):207-209. doi: 10.1016/j.anorl.2020.01.017. Epub 2020 Apr 28.

Authors

R Quatre¹, A Baguant², H Gil³, S Schmerber⁴

Affiliations

¹ Clinique universitaire d'oto-rhino-laryngologie et de chirurgie cervico-faciale, pôle PALCROS, CHU de Grenoble, hôpital Nord, CS 10217, Grenoble cedex 9, France; Pôle médecine, Université Grenoble Alpes, domaine de la Merci, 38700 La Tronche, France. Electronic address: rquatre@chu-grenoble.fr.
² Clinique universitaire d'oto-rhino-laryngologie et de chirurgie cervico-faciale, pôle PALCROS, CHU de Grenoble, hôpital Nord, CS 10217, Grenoble cedex 9, France; Pôle médecine, Université Grenoble Alpes, domaine de la Merci, 38700 La Tronche, France.
³ Clinique universitaire d'oto-rhino-laryngologie et de chirurgie cervico-faciale, pôle PALCROS, CHU de Grenoble, hôpital Nord, CS 10217, Grenoble cedex 9, France; Département d'Anatomie et Cytologie Pathologiques, CHU de Grenoble, hôpital Nord, CS 10217, Grenoble cedex 9, France.
⁴ Clinique universitaire d'oto-rhino-laryngologie et de chirurgie cervico-faciale, pôle PALCROS, CHU de Grenoble, hôpital Nord, CS 10217, Grenoble cedex 9, France; Pôle médecine, Université Grenoble Alpes, domaine de la Merci, 38700 La Tronche, France; Université Grenoble-Alpes, Brain Tech Lab, Inserm UMR 1205, 38000 Grenoble, France.

PMID: 32359814
DOI: 10.1016/j.anorl.2020.01.017

Abstract

Introduction: Glial heterotopia is defined as the presence of normal glial tissue in an abnormal site.

Case report: We report the case of a 63-year-old man who presented with right hearing loss and tinnitus. ENT examination, computed tomography and magnetic resonance imaging showed signs of chronic otitis media. Right mastoidectomy demonstrated a solid mass of the right mastoid and middle ear with no associated dehiscence of the tegmen tympani. Histological examination of the mass revealed normal glial tissue.

Discussion: Glial heterotopia is a rare entity, which must be distinguished from encephalocele. It is usually an incidental surgical finding when the surgeon observes a mass of the mastoid and middle ear not communicating with the central nervous system. Histological examination confirms the diagnosis by revealing normal glial tissue in the ear.

Keywords: Choristoma; Glial; Heterotopia; Middle ear; Tumour..

Publication types

Case Reports

MeSH terms

Choristoma / diagnosis*
Ear Diseases / diagnosis*
Ear, Middle*
Humans
Male
Middle Aged
Neuroglia*