Skull Base Osteomyelitis With Facial and Trigeminal Nerve Involvement Secondary to Otitis Media

Skull base osteomyelitis (SBO) is a rare condition that is associated with high morbidity rates. It is most commonly caused by an infection in the external part of the ear that eventually spreads to the skull base and related structures. To our knowledge, reports in the literature concerning atypical causes of SBO (e.g., otitis media) have been scarce. In this report, we present a rare case of an elderly diabetic patient who presented with unilateral SBO originating from an infection in the middle ear. This patient also had ipsilateral facial weakness and trismus, indicating a spread of the infection to the facial and trigeminal cranial nerves.