ELONGATED STYLOID PROCESSES: Report of Two Cases

Abstract

Most instances of elongated or otherwise abnormal styloid processes that have been reported were observed by anatomists rather than by clinicians. It is probable that numerous cases of elongated styloid processes have been observed and treated by operation when necessary, but relatively few have been recorded. The credit for the first authentic report of clinical symptoms with subsequent removal of the styloid process goes to Weinlecher, for a case observed in 1872. Ossification of the stylohyoid ligament, however, had been recorded as early as 1652 by Demanchetis. The normal styloid process measures between 2.5 and 3 cm. The tip is cartilaginous and is continued over to the lesser cornu of the hyoid bone as a band known as the stylohyoid ligament. Total calcification of this ligament has been observed anatomically. According to Dwight,¹ the styloid process can be divided into four portions. The most proximal, a cuplike portion, is called