Gliomatous tumors in the nasal region are rare. Black and Smith1 have found 34 cases of nasal gliomas reported in medical literature up to 1950. Macomber and Wang2 classified the congenital tumors of the nose into three groups according to the error in development: (1) tumors of neurogenic origin (gliomas, encephaloceles, neurofibromas), (2) tumors ofectodermic origin (dermoid cyst), (3) tumors of mesodermic origin (hemangiomas).
The neurogenic tumors of the nose could be divided into two large groups consisting of, first, developmental errors and, second, neoplasm. There has been some confusion as to where the nasal gliomas belong; however, the embryologic origin is favored by most authors. One of the earliest theories is that of Schmidt,3 who postulated that the tumor was originally an encephalocele which had been cut off the brain during embryonic development by closure of the embryonic sutures of the skull. McGillicuddy4 felt that