Stylohyoid complex syndrome: A report of two cases and review of the literature

Abstract

This article reports two patients with stylohyoid complex syndrome.Cone beam computed tomography examination of the 37-year-old Caucasian woman with hemifacial pain, radiating to the left ear which intensified in response to opening the mouth revealed the ossified distal part of the left stylohyoid ligament, 23.85 mm long, which had a contact with the lesser horn of the hyoid.A 43-year-old man with a 5-month history of pain in the anterolateral surface of the neck and temporomandibular joint on the right side when swallowing and yawning had the styloid process elongation with a “bayonet-like” deformity on the same side.Ossification of the stylohyoid ligament, elongation and bending of the slyloid process, as a reason of the lateral neck and/or facial pain is not commonly suspected in clinical practice where diagnosis is often first made radiologically.

Keywords

• Musculoskeletal system
• Anatomy
• Eye-ear-nose-throat
• Medical imaging
• Clinical research
• Styloid process