title: Pathological laughter in trigeminal schwannoma: case report and review of the literature.
abstract: Pathological laughter is an uncommon manifestation of neurosurgical diseases. Very few cases of trigeminal schwannoma have been reported in the literature presenting with pathological laughter as a predominant symptom. We are reporting on a case of multi-compartmental trigeminal schwannoma presenting as pathological laughter and discuss a review of the literature. A 23-year-old lady presented with pathological laughter, along with symptoms pertaining to other cranial nerves and cerebellar dysfunction. Magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) of the brain was suggestive of a dumbbell-shaped mass in the middle and posterior cranial fossa on the left side, causing significant compression of the pons. She was investigated and operated for multi-compartmental trigeminal schwannoma. Following surgery, abnormal laughter disappeared immediately and no recurrence of symptoms was -present for a follow-up of 16 months. This case supports the role of the brainstem, especially the pons, in the control of laughter and, perhaps, of the medial temporal lobe too.
authors.affiliation: Department of Neurosurgery, G.B. Pant Hospital and Associated Maulana Azad Medical College, New Delhi 110002, India. anita10@indiatimes.com
authors.forename: Anita
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Jagetia
authors.forename: N
authors.initials: N
authors.lastname: Pratap Kumar
authors.forename: Daljit
authors.initials: D
authors.lastname: Singh
authors.forename: Sanjiv
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Sinha
mesh_terms: D000328:Adult; D002533:Cerebral Angiography; D003390:Cranial Nerve Neoplasms / Q000523:psychology* / Q000601:surgery; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D007845:Laughter / Q000523:psychology*; D008279:Magnetic Resonance Imaging; D009442:Neurilemmoma / Q000523:psychology* / Q000601:surgery; D019635:Neurosurgical Procedures; D011183:Postoperative Complications / Q000473:pathology / Q000523:psychology; D020433:Trigeminal Nerve Diseases / Q000523:psychology* / Q000601:surgery