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Clinicoradiologic characteristics of endolymphatic sac tumors

  • Otology
  • Published:
European Archives of Oto-Rhino-Laryngology Aims and scope Submit manuscript

Abstract

Purpose

Endolymphatic sac tumor (ELST) is a rare, slow-growing, and low-grade malignant tumor arising from the endolymphatic sac in the posterior petrous bone. The purpose of this study is to describe the clinical and radiologic features, and investigate the clinicoradiologic correlation of ELST.

Methods

We retrospectively reviewed the clinical, computed tomography (CT), magnetic resonance imaging (MRI), and pathologic findings of 14 patients with 15 ELSTs.

Results

Patients comprised of eight women and six men with a mean age of 42.3 years at the time of diagnosis and 35.2 years at the time of initial symptoms. The mean interval between initial symptoms and diagnosis was 84.7 months. The most frequent cochleovestibular symptom was hearing loss in 14 patients (100%); other cochleovestibular symptoms were tinnitus in eight patients (57.1%), vertigo in three patients (21.4%), and aural fullness in three patients (21.4%). Ten patients (71.4%) presented with facial paralyses and five patients (14.3%) presented lower cranial nerve deficits. CT findings revealed spiculated, stippled, or reticular high density within the tumors. The lesions involved mastoid cells, vertical facial nerve canal, semicircular canal, cochlea, tympanum, jugular foramen, internal auditory canal, or petrous apex. On the available MRI, all the eight lesions showed patchy and/or speckled hyperintensity on unenhanced T1WI. Five lesions showed flow voids on T2WI and T1WI. Three lesions had blood fluid levels within cysts.

Conclusion

CT and MRI findings of ELSTs are associated with clinical features. Imaging tests should be performed to identify ELSTs early and ensure greater potential for hearing preservation in patients with cochleovestibular symptoms.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Radiology, The Fifth Affiliated Hospital of Sun Yat-Sen University, 52# Meihua Dong Road, Zhuhai, 519000, China

    Hongbo Le & Guobin Hong

  2. Food Safety and Health Research Center, School of Public Health, Southern Medical University, Guangzhou, 510515, China

    Huihong Zhang

  3. Department of Radiology, The Affiliated Huai’an No.1 People’s Hospital of Nanjing Medical University, Huai’an, 223300, China

    Weijing Tao

  4. Department of Radiology, Chinese People’s Liberation Army (PLA) General Hospital, 28# Fuxing Road, Beijing, 100853, China

    Lan Lin, Lin Ma & Xin Lou

  5. Department of Radiology, Dongsheng People’s Hospital, Erdos, 017000, Inner Mongolia, China

    Lan Lin

  6. Department of Pathology, Chinese People’s Liberation Army (PLA) General Hospital, Beijing, 100853, China

    Jie Li

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  1. Hongbo Le
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  4. Lan Lin
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Correspondence to Guobin Hong or Xin Lou.

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We declare that we have no financial and personal relationships with other people or organizations that can inappropriately influence our work, there is no professional or other personal interest of any nature or kind in any product, service and/or company that could be construed as influencing the position presented in, or the review of, the manuscript entitled “Clinicoradiologic Characteristics of Endolymphatic Sac Tumors”.

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Le, H., Zhang, H., Tao, W. et al. Clinicoradiologic characteristics of endolymphatic sac tumors. Eur Arch Otorhinolaryngol 276, 2705–2714 (2019). https://doi.org/10.1007/s00405-019-05511-8

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