A MENINGOCELE WITHIN THE MIDDLE TURBINATE DISCOVERED DURING AN OPERATION ON THE ETHMOID, RESULTING IN MENINGITIS AND RECOVERY

Abstract

This case is reported in order that a rare anatomic anomaly in intranasal anatomy will not go unheeded, and to add one more topic to the long list of hazards frequently encountered in performing operations on the ethmoid. The presence of a meningocele within the middle turbinate is a rare finding, as is proved by the fact that meningocele has not been found in any of the middle turbinates that have been sacrificed over a period of many years. An endeavor has been made to find the report of a similar case, but in a search of the literature on meningoceles, I have been unable to discover any reference to meningoceles in the ethmoidal region. As an explanation of the method of development of the meningocele in the case to be reported, two theories present themselves: 1. Owing to the long-standing disease of the ethmoid, the roof of the ethmoid