Canadian Journal of Anesthesia, Vol 46, 1143-1145, Copyright © 1999 by Canadian Anesthesiologists' Society

ARTICLES

Transient nerve damage following intubation for trans-sphenoidal hypophysectomy

KA Evers, GB Eindhoven and JM Wierda
Department of Anesthesiology, University Hospital Groningen, The Netherlands. K.A.Evers@anest.azg.nl

PURPOSE: To describe a case of transient lingual and hypoglossal nerve damage following intubation for a trans-sphenoidal hypophysectomy. CLINICAL FEATURES: A 56-yr-old acromegalic man was scheduled for trans-sphenoidal hypophysectomy. He had been treated with octreotide six months previously which had reduced the swelling of the tongue to an acceptable degree to the patient. During the anesthetic procedure there were no problems. The intubation was performed without any difficulty, no force had been used to place the endotracheal tube, a throat pack was inserted and, before extubation, an oro-gastric tube was inserted. Three days after surgery the patient complained of numbness and swelling of the left side of the tongue, he had difficulty in moving the tongue, speaking difficulties and problems in swallowing food were noted. Also taste was lost on this side of the tongue. Left lingual and hypoglossal nerve damage was diagnosed, which was confirmed by the neurologist. After four months of intensive physiotherapy and speech therapy, the symptoms disappeared. CONCLUSION: This is a report of a very rare complication of lingual and hypoglossal nerve damage in an acromegalic patient. This incident suggests forceful laryngoscopy, hyperextension of the head and the throat pack (tightly packed in the oropharynx) can result in injury of the lingual and the hypoglossal nerves.