Neurinoma of the facial nerve has only recently been reported in the American literature. The tumor has also been known by such names as "perineurial fibroblastoma," "neurilemmoma," "peripheral glioma," "schwannoglioma" and "schwannoma."
This report, with the presentation of a case, is being given because of the rarity of the tumor and because it demonstrates the possibility of making a preoperative diagnosis.
In 1935 Altmann1 presented 4 cases of neurinoma of the descending portion of the facial nerve; then, in 1937, he reported 1 more case.2 In both his reports he demonstrated that the tumor presents a definite clinical entity and published the first comprehensive discussion of the differential diagnosis. He dealt with far progressed stages of the condition and the important diseases entering into the differential diagnosis. These are chronic otitis media with polyp formation, proliferative tuberculosis of the middle ear and carcinoma of the middle ear. Altmann2 stated that