Images in Clinical Medicine
Glomus Tympanicum
N Engl J Med 2010; 362:e66June 3, 2010
- Article
Video
Reddish Mass at the Posterior Segment of the Tympanic Membrane.
A 50-year-old woman presented with a 1-year history of pulsatile tinnitus in the right ear without any hearing loss. One year earlier, she had undergone partial resection of the colon for the treatment of colon cancer and had received chemotherapy; there had been no recurrence of the cancer. Examination of the right ear revealed a pulsating reddish mass at the posterior segment of the tympanic membrane (arrow; see video). The left ear was normal. Computed tomography and magnetic resonance imaging revealed a highly vascular lesion posterior to the tympanic membrane that did not extend into the mastoid cavity. On the basis of her symptoms and the physical examination, her condition was diagnosed as glomus tympanicum, a benign neoplasm of the middle ear that is commonly treated with surgical removal. The lesion was resected by means of an endaural approach. The patient had no postoperative hearing loss, and the pulsatile tinnitus stopped immediately.
Chi-Kyou Lee, M.D., Ph.D.
Kye Hoon Park, M.D.
Soonchunhyang University School of Medicine, Chonan, South Korea
drqlee@hanmail.net
