Gradenigo syndrome caused by nontuberculous mycobacteria

Gradenigo syndrome is a rare but devastating complication of otitis media that involves the petrous apex. Clinically, it is characterized by the triad of suppurative otitis media, deep facial pain, and abducens palsy. Most of the Gradenigo syndrome cases that have been reported in the literature were caused by pyogenic bacteria. In this report, we describe the clinical courses of 4 adults with Gradenigo syndrome who were encountered consecutively at a tertiary referral hospital between 2008 and 2012. Mycobacterium abscessus was confirmed in all 4 cases by culturing the pathological tissues obtained during surgical debridement. To the best of our knowledge, this is the first report documenting infections of nontuberculous mycobacteria (NTM) in Gradenigo syndrome. An NTM infection must be considered in chronic otomastoiditis complicated by Gradenigo syndrome. The definite treatment of Gradenigo syndrome with an NTM infection requires adequate surgical debridement combined with antibiotic treatment for at least 4-6 months.