[The study of 11 cases of chordoma in the skull base or neck].
OBJECTIVE
To study the clinical manifestation, histopathological types, radiological characteristics, surgical methods and the prospective efficacy of chordoma in the skull base and neck.


METHODS
Analyzed the characteristics about eleven patients with chordoma in the skull base or neck that we had treated in our department from 1985 to 2003 and introduced a case of a huge chordoma in the neck. All of the patients were treated by surgery.


RESULTS
The clinical manifestations of chordoma in the neck or skull base were complex. The first symptoms included the mass in the neck, rhinocleisis, visuognosis fall, tinnitus, hearing loss, and damages of brain nerves. Eight cases were the typical chordoma and the other three were the cartilaginiform chordoma. The dilatant image of parenchyma was the feature in CT scan and the images often had clear confines. The cervical vertebra and the skull base were damaged in the most of the cases. Four patients (4/11) recrudesced in two years after the surgery, and eight of eleven were living more than five years after the surgery.


CONCLUSIONS
The clinical manifestations of chordoma in the neck or skull base were complex. The cervical vertebra and the skull base were often damaged in the most of the cases. Surgery is an effective method on chordoma. The surgery path should be selected according
Zhang
Hui
H
Department of Otolaryngology, the Second Hospital of Shandong University, Jinan, 250033, China.
Zhang
Daliang
D
Sun
Yan
Y
Guo
Chenghao
C
Sun
Wei
W
Zhang
Hongping
H
Zu
Yougu
Y
D000328:Adult; D000368:Aged; D002817:Chordoma / Q000601:surgery*; D005260:Female; D006258:Head and Neck Neoplasms / Q000601:surgery*; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D012189:Retrospective Studies; D019292:Skull Base Neoplasms / Q000601:surgery*