Lateral skull-base surgery--a review of recent advances in surgical approaches

The expanding field of lateral skull-base surgery is reviewed. The rapid evolution of this subspecialty of otolaryngology--head and neck surgery has occurred subsequent to the primary postgraduate training of many practitioners of our specialty. Furthermore, it can be difficult for many resident physicians to acquire concise, up-to-date references pertaining to this area of subspecialization. This article is designed to provide a succinct, up-to-date review of the field of lateral skull-base surgery.

The current literature is reviewed.

Lateral skull-base surgery is a rapidly evolving discipline involving neurologists and neurosurgeons in the resection of complex lesions of the skull base that had previously been difficult or impossible to adequately access. Otolaryngologists,via the subspecialty of neurotology, have been leaders in developing and applying the different lateral skull-base approaches.

This article categorizes the various lateral skull-base approaches, outlines the principles of the surgical exposures, and discusses the indications for their use.