Relevance: Styloid process syndrome – a disease which is caused by irritation of the styloid process of the temporal bone surrounding the nerve, vascular and muscle structures. The syndrome is manifested by chronic painin deep division of the facial area referred to the root of the tongue, throat and ear, dysphagia, symptoms of circulatory disorders of the brain. Because of the low awareness of the disease practical specialists usually miss the diagnoses. Patients with different diagnoses are treated by different specialists; most often the prescribed symptomatic treatment is ineffective or does not give any result at all. The syndrome causes severe suffering to patients, reduces the quality of life.
Purpose of the study: Assess the most significant clinical signs of the disease, mutual work between hypertrophied styloid process with the neurovascular neck formations, the effectiveness of conservative and surgical treatment.
Materials and methods: 144 people were examined and treated by us. Of these, 103 women (71,5%), 41 men (28,5%), aged 25 to 70 years. The disease lasts from one year until 10-15 years. Tomography of the styloid processes with 3D reconstruction and contrasting of the main vessels of the neck was used.
Results of the study and the discussion: we proposed a grading scale for the quality of the treatment, the five-point scale. The quality of the treatment was assessed by the number of reduction in scores and, accordingly, patient complaints. Of the total number of patients – 144 people, the success of the treatment by 0 points was assessed by 60 people (that is, absence of any symptomatology) (41,7%), 1 point – 44 (30,5%), 2-3 points – 27 (18,7%), 4-5 points – 13 (9%), that is significant effect of the treatment was not achieved. To all those people with the result of the treatment was estimated at 4-5 points, respectively, was proposed an operative method of the treatment – the resection of the styloid process from the corresponding side.
Conclusions: Because of the lack of knowledge of such important topic it is necessary to improve diagnostic methods. Hypertrophy of the styloid process is not the main reason of the development of styloid syndrome; the degree of deviation of the process is important. Conservative treatment in most cases has a lasting effect, but has repeated symptoms after a certain period of time; surgical treatment should be directed to the maximal resection of styloid process for decreasing the axis pressure on the neurovascular bundle of the neck.
Post-traumatic coccygodynia: current issues. Review of foreign literature
