Eagle Syndrome: A Rare, but Real Cause of Neck Pain

Mary Franz - Feb 01st, 2011

Neck pain is a condition that commonly drives people to visit a chiropractor. But what happens when you combine neck pain with a soar throat and ringing in the ears? In some rare cases, the diagnosis might be Eagle Syndrome. The syndrome was first coined by an ear, nose, and throat doctor, Watt Weems Eagle in 1937, though diagnosis is often missed, possibly because the symptoms are wide-ranging and could be mistaken for many common conditions.

The symptoms Eagle Disease include neck pain, sore throat, difficulty swallowing, tinnitus (ringing in the ears), facial pain, dysphagia, tinnitus, unilateral facial and neck pain, and ear pain. The pain sometimes radiates and can become deferred pain felt in other parts of the body. Many of these cases are deemed psychosomatic in nature and referred to mental health.

In reality, Eagle Syndrome is caused by an abnormally elongated bone that extends from the temple called the temporal styloid process. This abnormality causes compression of the adjacent structures, such as the carotid artery, which results in pain and abnormal function.

In a case report, a 53-year-old man presented with complaints of a headache, difficulty swallowing, dizziness, eye pain and consistent pain in his neck for a duration of 10-15 years. He had been in a car accident several years prior and suffered spinal injuries that were repaired surgically. On exam, it was found that his right temporal styloid process measured 85 mm and the left, 55 mm with normal length being 25 mm.

The patient opted for partial styloidectomy in which the styloid process is trimmed to proper length. He reported a decrease in headache and eye pain after 4 weeks.

The usual cause for this elongation is a fracture of the styloid, which results in tissue growth. Calcification of the styloid process, tonsillectomy and congenital reasons are also possible causes. Because Eagle Syndrome can lead to dissection of the carotid artery, proper evaluation is important in patients with symptoms beyond normal and or lingering neck pain.

Dunn-Ryznyk, L. MPAS, PA-C, FDAAPA; Kelly, C., MS, PA-C; Eagle syndrome: A rare cause of 
dysphagia and head and neck pain. Journal of the American Academy of Physician Assistants. 2010, Dec.