Salivary Gland Tissue in the Middle Ear: A Rare Tumor

Abstract

In view of the recent embryologic studies of the middle ear, 1 it is logical that salivary gland tissue which normally would be present in the pharynx could also develop in the middle ear. Such ectopic salivary gland tissue has been observed in the oral cavity at other than the major salivary gland sites and occasionally has been observed in the nasal cavities, but rarely has it been observed elsewhere. 2-8 The present case is one of salivary gland tissue apparently primarily developing in the middle ear, a condition we have not seen reported elsewhere in the recent literature. Report of Case A white woman, aged 31, had had left unilateral deafness all her life, for which she was seen by several otologists who had advised no therapy. She was well adjusted to her impaired hearing and was rather unconcerned about it or about the occasional tinnitus she noted. Because of