title: A multifocal schwannoma of the masseteric nerve causing hemicrania.
abstract: A case is reported of schwannoma of the right masseteric nerve, invading the pterygopalatine fossa and the parapharyngeal space through the mandibular notch in a 61-year-old woman. The tumor in this case was composed of four various-sized interconnected nodules, simulating a string of beads. The tumor was the cause of the patient's chronic hemicrania, as confirmed by the relief from and disappearance of head pain after surgical removal of the tumor. The most important aspects of this case are the anatomic site of the schwannoma and its uncommon clinicopathologic manifestations; this tumor originated from the masseteric nerve and is the first case reported to straddle the mandibular notch.
authors.affiliation: Department of Oral and Maxillofacial Surgery II, Hiroshima University School of Dentistry, Japan.
authors.forename: T
authors.initials: T
authors.lastname: Ishikawa
authors.forename: K
authors.initials: K
authors.lastname: Murakami
authors.forename: R
authors.initials: R
authors.lastname: Yasui
authors.forename: K
authors.initials: K
authors.lastname: Maeda
authors.forename: K
authors.initials: K
authors.lastname: Tanaka
authors.forename: T
authors.initials: T
authors.lastname: Shimosato
mesh_terms: D003390:Cranial Nerve Neoplasms / Q000150:complications* / Q000601:surgery; D004576:Electromyography; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D008406:Masseter Muscle / Q000294:innervation*; D008875:Middle Aged; D008881:Migraine Disorders / Q000209:etiology*; D009442:Neurilemmoma / Q000150:complications* / Q000601:surgery; D013704:Temporomandibular Joint / Q000294:innervation