[Neurinomas of the auditory nerve in children]

Analysis of 7 child cases with neurinoma of the acoustic nerve, tumors which are extremely rare in children, showed that they have characteristic clinical features. The disease was manifested at the age of 12--15 years, sometimes against the background of diffuse neurofibromatosis. The mean duration of the disease varied from 5 months to one year. The tumor was marked by rapid growth, medial variant of localization with extension in the oro-caudal direction, and rich blood supply. Hearing diminished rapidly to total deafness, and the loss was usually bilateral. The facial nerve suffered less frequently. The hypertensive-occlusive syndrome was observed with marked stem-cerebellar symptoms and protein-cellular dissociation in the cerebrospinal fluid, which suggests tumor of the cerebellum. Ventriculography with maiodil emulsion and vertebral angiography helped in making a precise diagnosis. Radical removal of the tumor proved very difficult because it was large and intimately connected with the brain stem.