Surgical treatment of atypical glossopharyngeal neuralgia

Abstract

Objective To investigate the effective surgical methods for the treatment of atypical glossopharyngeal neuralgia. Methods Thirteen patients with atypical glossopharyngeal neuralgia treated from January 2007 to April 2013 were analyzed retrospectively. The clinical symptoms, intraoperative findings, surgical methods, efficacy, and follow-up results of those patients were summarized and analyzed according to the literature. Results Nine patients with vascular compression were treated by the microvascular decompression in combination with rhizotomy of glossopharyngeal nerve root and vagal nerve upper 2 to 3 rootlets. Four patients without clearly vascular compression were treated by rhizotomy of glossopharyngeal nerve root and vagal nerve upper 2 to 3 rootlets. The postoperative pain of the patients disappeared completely. The complications included simple dysphagia (n=1), dysphagia with hoarseness (n=1), hearing loss (n=1), and occasional dry cough with intracranial infection (n=1). They were followed up for 8 months to 7 years. Their complications disappeared completely. No recurrence was observed during the follow-up period. Conclusion Atypical glossopharyngeal neuralgia treated by microvascular decompression in combination with rhizotomy of glossopharyngeal nerve root and vagal nerve upper 2 to 3 rootlets may obtain a good efficacy. Key words: Glossopharyngeal neuralgia; Atypical; Surgical treatment