Tornwaldt's Cyst and Magnetic Resonance Imaging

5 years follow up after transnasal endoscopic surgery of Thornwaldt's cyst with powered instrumentation

“…While eustachian tube dysfunction, sorethroat, snoring and halithosis were the least frequent symptoms (9.1% for each). This is similar to the results of most previous studies [6,[15][16][17].…”

“…TC may progress to Tornwaldt's disease if it becomes infected or inflamed and produces symptoms [6,[15][16][17]. Proper endoscopic nasopharyngeal examination with CT and MRI remains the best method of clinical assessment [18,19].…”

Thornwaldt’s Cyst

“…A CT scan demonstrates a soft tissue mass located high on the posterior nasopharyngeal wall with sharp borders. MRI of the nasopharynx is a sensitive method for detecting and evaluating cystic lesions of the nasopharynx (8,9). The lesion usually has a characteristic high signal intensity on T2-weighted and intermediate to high signal intensity on T1-weighted MRI imaging (10,11).…”

What is the diagnosis?

“…1,5 Adenoidectomy and other inflammatory insults to the area have been implicated, inconclusively, as mechanisms by which a pharyngeal bursa initially becomes obstructed, leading to the formation of a Tornwaldt's cyst from what was once just a potential space. 6 The differential diagnosis of cystic lesion in the posterior wall of the nasopharynx should also include meningoencephaloceles, sphenoid sinus mucoceles, Rathke's pouch cysts, branchial cleft cysts, and adenoid retention cysts.…”