[A case of Burkitt's lymphoma with numb chin syndrome as the initial manifestation].

In 1963, Calverley and Mohnac reported four cases with sensory disturbance of the mental nerve region. They emphasized the symptomatological significance of that finding because of the underlying ominous diseases. The purpose of this paper is to emphasize the clinical importance of this symptom especially as the initial manifestation of the underlying malignant diseases. A 56-year-old Japanese female was seen in consultation because of complaints of the paresthesia over the distribution of the right mental nerve, diplopia and ptosis of the right side. The patient had been well until a hundred days prior to admission, when she noted numbness with pain of the right mental nerve region. This symptom was followed by ptosis of the right side and diplopia after five weeks. MRI-CT scan revealed an abnormally low intensity echo (in T1 weighted image) of the bone around sphenoid sinus and tumor of the cavernous sinus (in T2 weighted image) compressing the right internal carotid artery. The patient was transferred to this hospital 100 days after the occurrence of the initial symptom. Physical examination revealed neither superficial lymph node swelling nor buccal tumor. Abnormal findings were restricted to the cranial nerve regions such as diplopia, adduction disturbance, sluggish light reflex of the right side and hypesthesia on the right chin, lower lip and buccal mucous membrane. Other neurological findings were not significant. Laboratory findings showed elevated LDH (1,503 IU/L). Leucocyte cell count was 7,500/mm3 with almost normal composition. CSF was normal. A diagnosis of Burkitt's lymphoma stage IV was done by nasopharynx and bone marrow biopsies.(ABSTRACT TRUNCATED AT 250 WORDS)