Background:

Eagle’s syndrome is characterized by pain radiating to the pharynx and cervical spine, usually associated with dysphagia and foreign body sensation in the throat; it is caused by the elongation of the styloid process due to stylohyoid ligament calcification.

Clinical case:

We report a 71-year-old male with symptomatology of one year of evolution characterized by pain with paroxysmal exacerbations of the pharynx that radiates to the cervical spine with left lateral rotation associated to dysphagia and foreign body sensation in the throat. On the physical examination, the left anterior tonsillar pillar palpation triggers pain; a tomographic assessment corroborates styloid process elongation. As a diagnostic test, the tonsillar region was infiltrated with xylocaine; the symptoms subsided, so the diagnosis of Eagle’s syndrome was confirmed.

Conclusions:

Eagle’s syndrome is a rare entity that is diagnosed by screening directed at the tonsillar fossa, confirmed by radiologic studies and local anesthetic infiltration.