Aneurysm of the internal carotid artery--a differential diagnosis of paralysis of the caudal cranial nerves

Paralysis of the caudal cranial nerves, e. g. the nervus glossopharyngeus, vagus and accessorius, may cause disorders in swallowing and speaking leading to a reduction in the patient's quality of life. Glomus tumors or malignant lesions of the skull base are a frequent cause of such lesions. We report on the case of a 48 year old patient who presented an acute lesion of these cranial nerves in combination with paresis of the nervus hypoglossus as a result of an aneurysm of the internal carotid artery directly underneath the base of the skull. The aneurysm was treated by parent vessel occlusion. The results of this procedure were a shrinkage of the aneurysm and an improvement in the neurological symptoms.