Case report highlights parapharyngeal emphysema linked to subtle temporal bone fractures, suggesting vigilance in diagnosis.
We report the case of a 45‐year‐old male who presented to the emergency department with otorrhagia following a road traffic accident. Initial examination showed no neurological deficits, and computed tomography (CT) imaging revealed a subtle right temporal bone fracture with associated parapharyngeal emphysema. The emphysema resolved within 2.5 weeks after symptomatic treatment, with no complications on follow‐up. This case highlights the importance of vigilance in detecting subtle temporal bone fractures and their rare complications, such as parapharyngeal emphysema, to prevent serious outcomes, including brain herniation.
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Ishaq et al. (2025) studied this question.
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