Abstract
Four patients whose chief complaint was sensation of a foreign body in the throat were found to have elongated styloid processes.
The patients were a 41-year-old male, a 1-year-old female, a 45-year-old female and a 46-year-old male. In the first patient, a submucosal projection in the tonsil bed was noted after bilateral tonsillectomy. The elongated styloid process was removed by a transoral approach. In the other three patients no abnormality was seen in the pharynx, but a bony submucosal projection was palpated behind the tonsil: therefore a diagnosis was made of elongated styloid process.
The incidence of laryngo-pharyngeal neurosis is increasing, and it should be kept in mind that an elongated styloid process is not rare one. It does not always cause an abnormal appearance in the pharynx. Xeroradiography seems to be better than roentgenography in the diagnosis of this abnormality.
