Nasopharyngeal bursitis: from embryology to clinical presentation

AE El-Shazly, S Barriat, PP Lefebvre
Department of Otorhinolaryngology and Head and Neck Surgery, Liege University Hospital, Liege, Belgium

Abstract: Nasopharyngeal bursitis is a relatively rare syndrome characterized by a collection of symptoms that multidisciplinary specialists should be aware of. Here we present an audit of cases presenting to a rhinology clinic over a two-year period, as well as an overview of the relevant embryology and different clinical presentations of nasopharyngeal bursitis. For 2008–2009, six patients were diagnosed to have nasopharyngeal bursitis, including four males and two females, of mean age 54 years. Two distinct pathologic types were observed, comprising three patients with classical Tornwaldt’s cyst and three with crust-type bursitis. This audit highlights the importance of recognition of the crust-type of nasopharyngeal bursitis and its anatomic and clinical features. A combined endonasal and transoral endoscopic approach is a minimally invasive procedure and an effective method of treating both types of the disease. Our findings are discussed in relation to the embryology of the disorder, with a clinical emphasis on crust-type nasopharyngeal bursitis.

Keywords: nasopharyngeal bursitis, crust type, Tornwaldt’s cyst, endoscopic disruption