Clinical Manifestations and Surgical Treatment of Vestibular Schwannoma: Review and Current Approach

Abstract

Vestibular schwannoma (VS) is a benign tumor that originates from Schwann cells and affects the vestibulocochlear nerve. It is the most common tumor of the nerve sheath, representing around 80% of tumors that affect the cerebellopontine angle (PCA) of the VIII cranial nerve.  It has a low incidence in the world population, occurs more in women and is more present between 50 and 60 years of age. The methodology is based on a qualitative and descriptive literature review, using articles in Portuguese, English and Spanish from the scientific platform Portal Regional da Biblioteca Virtual em Saúde (VHL), Medline, Lilacs, Pubmed and Scielo. The research identified several clinical manifestations of the tumor, with hearing loss being the most common symptom, in addition to tinnitus, vertigo or dizziness, headache and facial numbness. Acoustic neuroma currently has several treatment options, ranging from expectant management to surgical management. Thus, surgical intervention represents the most commonly used form of treatment, with the best results, in addition to being able to be associated with other procedures, always analyzing the patient's clinical characteristics and the size of the tumor.