Perioperative complications in acoustic neuroma surgery do exist, but this study demonstrated how low the incidence is. The authors believe that the low percentage of complications is mainly attributable to the majority of operations being carried out in specialized clinics, where they are considered routine operations. They believe that following individualized approaches, depending on tumor size and on the preoperative function of the cranial nerves, is the proper way to reach a significant reduction in complications while maintaining a high percentage of total tumor removal. The results of this study, considered as a basis of comparison with other studies, will certainly be useful in preoperative patient counseling.

The use of proper surgical technique minimizes the risk of CSF leak. Study results show that the continued application of the authors' proposed preventive measures resulted in the maintenance of a low rate of CSF leak. Immediate management of CSF fistulae helps prevent meningitis.

Preoperative balloon occlusion of the internal carotid artery can still be considered a viable option for the management of the internal carotid artery during lateral skull base surgery. Proper preoperative evaluation of the adequacy and efficacy of the collateral cerebral circulation reduces the chances of postoperative neurovascular complications.

Temporal bone hemangiomas are rare tumors that require a high degree of clinical suspicion on the part of the otolaryngologist to be diagnosed early. The purpose of this report is to present 10 histologically confirmed cases of hemangiomas located within the temporal bone treated at the Gruppo Otologico of Piacenza-Rome, Italy. A short review of the literature is also presented. The symptomatology of these extraneural vascular tumors depends on their location. Tumors located within the internal auditory canal present mainly with hearing loss, while a facial nerve deficit is the predominant symptom in geniculate ganglion tumors. The treatment modality is also dependent on the location of the tumor, as well as the clinical features and tumor size. The final facial nerve outcome is directly affected by the duration of the facial nerve deficit, and so the treatment should not be delayed once the diagnosis is made.

The translabyrinthine approach was once considered inadequate for the removal of acoustic neuromas (ANs), but that theory has few proponents today. Over the years, the translabyrinthine approach has been modified into the enlarged translabyrinthine approach, with experience and technical refinements leading to a wider access. Between April 1987 and December 2001, the Gruppo Otologico of Piacenza-Rome was able to remove 175 ANs 3 cm or larger in size from the cerebellopontine angle by adopting this modified surgical technique. These tumors represented 24.7% of all 707 ANs for which surgery was performed during the same period of time. Among the 175 cases, there was only 1 death. The incidence of complications was very low and was comparable to results previously published in the literature. Consequently, the hospital stay was short, with a mean of 7.3 days (5.1 days in the last 45 cases). The preoperative ipsilateral hearing was already compromised in 119 of the 175 cases (68%; class C/D according to the Committee on Hearing and Equilibrium of the American Academy of Otolaryngology-Head and Neck Surgery, 1995). From our results, we can conclude that the use of the enlarged translabyrinthine approach in AN surgery is not dependent on tumor size. On the contrary, the advantages of a low rate of morbidity and a short hospital stay are ample proof that this is the best approach for the removal of large ANs.