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Nasal neuroma
Last reviewed: 04.07.2025
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Nasal neuroma is a benign tumor that develops from nerve tissue; an extremely rare case in otolaryngology.
[ What causes nasal neuroma?
Neurinomas as such are divided into gliomas - congenital tumors that develop from neuroglia and are classified as benign tumors, and neuroblastomas, which can occur at any age and are characterized by a malignant course.
Symptoms of nasal neuroma
Gliomas are detected in early childhood and manifest as swelling in the area of the root of the nose, ranging in size from a pea to a cherry. The size of the tumor increases with straining, coughing, or crying of the child. The tumor is dense to the touch, fused with the skin and underlying tissue.
Neuroblastoma does not have a distinct onset of development and is detected only when the patient begins to have nosebleeds, difficulty breathing through the nose, headaches, and sometimes exophthalmos. Rhinoscopy reveals a reddish-gray fleshy tumor in the nasal cavity, filling half (or more) of the nasal cavity, easily bleeding when touched with a probe. In the initial stage, the tumor grows slowly, but having reached a certain size, it suddenly begins to increase very quickly, penetrating the surrounding tissues and penetrating the paranasal sinuses and ethmoid labyrinth. The external sign of the tumor is the expansion of the root of the nose, smoothing of the area of the inner corner of the eye and the appearance of swelling here, in advanced cases - exophthalmos and amaurosis. Neuroblastoma does not metastasize to regional lymph nodes.
What do need to examine?
What tests are needed?
Treatment of nasal neuroma
Treatment of nasal neuroma is complex: surgical in combination with radiation therapy. The tumor most often recurs.
What is the prognosis for nasal neuroma?
In the initial stages of development, a nasal neuroma has a cautious prognosis; in cases of tumor growth into the orbit, ethmoid labyrinth, and anterior cranial fossa, the prognosis is very serious.