Glossopharyngeal neuralgia after resection of a glossopharyngeal schwannoma

Glossopharyngeal neuralgia is a rare condition and the origin is mostly idiopathic. Causes of symptomatic glossopharyngeal neuralgia can be tumors, infarction or trauma. We report the case of a 28-year-old patient who developed glossopharyngeal neuralgia after resection of a glossopharyngeal schwannoma, which is an extremely rare tumor. Treatment consisted of orally administered pregabalin and a series of injections of buprenorphine in the superior cervical ganglion (ganglionic local opioid application/analgesia, GLOA) which led to a substantial decrease in the frequency of pain attacks. This improvement was maintained at 1-year follow-up. This is the first report of development of glossopharyngeal neuralgia after resection of a glossopharyngeal schwannoma.