title: Extraorbital pseudotumor of the petrous apex: biopsy via a transnasal endoscopic approach.
abstract: Extraorbital idiopathic pseudotumors of the skull base are very uncommon. We report the case of a 50-year-old woman who presented with left ophthalmoplegia and vision loss. Imaging studies revealed an enhancing lesion involving the left petrous apex and cavernous sinus. A transnasal endoscopic approach was used to obtain a biopsy of the left petrous apex. Pathology identified the lesion as an idiopathic pseudotumor. The patient was treated with high-dose steroids and steroid-sparing immunomodulators, and she experienced a significant improvement. To the best of our knowledge, this is the first reported case of a transnasal endoscopic approach to a biopsy of a pseudotumor involving the petrous apex. We discuss the features of this case, and we review the literature on this condition.
authors.affiliation: Jordan Valley Medical Center, West Jordan, UT 84088, USA. jeffreyjaynelson@gmail.com
authors.forename: Jeffrey J
authors.initials: JJ
authors.lastname: Nelson
authors.forename: Parul
authors.initials: P
authors.lastname: Goyal
mesh_terms: D000305:Adrenal Cortex Hormones / Q000627:therapeutic use; D001706:Biopsy / Q000379:methods; D004724:Endoscopy / Q000295:instrumentation / Q000379:methods*; D005260:Female; D006104:Granuloma, Plasma Cell / Q000175:diagnosis / Q000473:pathology* / Q000601:surgery; D006801:Humans; D008279:Magnetic Resonance Imaging / Q000295:instrumentation / Q000379:methods; D008875:Middle Aged; D009669:Nose Neoplasms / Q000175:diagnosis / Q000473:pathology* / Q000601:surgery; D012886:Skull / Q000473:pathology*; D012888:Skull Neoplasms / Q000175:diagnosis / Q000473:pathology* / Q000601:surgery
chemical_list: D000305:Adrenal Cortex Hormones