Maxillary Sinus Barotrauma in a Silent Maxillary Sinus Syndrome Scenario: Case Report

Abstract

Barosinusitis is defined as an entity where damage to a paranasal sinus occurs secondary to sudden changes in atmospheric pressure. These dysbarisms respond to Boyle's Law where -given constant temperature- the pressure of a gas is inversely proportional to its volume. On the other hand, silent sinus syndrome is a pathology with few case reports in which the paranasal sinus undergoes a remodeling of its bony walls generating, in the case of the maxillary sinus, a descent of the eyeball and a herniation of the fat of the pterygopalatine fossa. The symptoms in these patients are insidious, so the diagnosis is usually fortuitous. The authors report a case where a diagnosis of silent maxillary sinus syndrome was made after an episode of severe maxillary barosinusitis.