Secondary or Symptomatic Hemifacial Spasm Caused by a Tumor of Cerebellopontine Angle: Case Report and Review of Literature

Background & Importance: Primary hemifacial spasm is usually caused by microvascular compression of the facialnerve at its root exit zone at brainstem without any space-occupying pathology. Secondary or so-called symptomatichemifacial spasm has an additional underlying pathology e.g. tumors leading to the microvascular compression. Wereview and discuss the pathophysiology and the literature of secondary hemifacial spasm.Case Presentation: We report on a 23 year-old man with a secondary right-sided hemifacial spasm in association withan ipsilateral epidermoid tumor of the cerbello-pontine angle.Conclusion: Intraoperatively, no offending vessel was observed near the root exit zone of the facial nerve. Microsurgicaltumor removal relieved the patient also from his hemifacial spasm.

کلیدواژه ها:

Cerebello-pontine angle ، Epidermoid ، Facial nerve ، Microvascular decompression ، Skull base