Skull-base meningioma extending to the parapharyngeal space

kull-base and parapharyngeal tumors require intricate treatments due to its anatomic complexity, variations in histological type, and the site often involves the presence of critical blood vessels and nerves. Diagnostic imaging and fine-needle aspiration cytology are thus essential. We report a case of skull-base meningioma extending to the parapharyngeal space in which we made a definitive diagnosis by biopsy (as grade I) and took a wait-and-see approach. A 52-year-old woman had complained of a headache since June 2006 and was seen in the neurology department at our hospital in July. A tumor from around the left jugular foramen to parapharyngeal space was revealed by magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) and she was referred for consultation to the neurosurgical department and our department. It was difficult to establish the diagnosis from the clinical manifestation and diagnostic images due to the tumor's complicated anatomy, therefore it was confirmed by biopsy instead of cytology. It can be said that biopsy is useful to determine therapeutic measures for the skull-base meningioma because it is less invasive and can verify a histological type compared with the complete removal of the tumor.