Abstract

This paper describes the clinical course of a wooden foreign body retained in the area of the external auditory canal and temporomandibular joint after an accidental trauma to the head region in a 61-year-old male. The patient was referred to the hospital due to acute purulent external auditory canal infection. A CT scan of the head revealed a wooden foreign body which had entered through the external auditory canal posterior to the  temporomandibular joint. Three-dimensional CT scan was found to be the most valuable diagnostic method as it enables to measure the exact location and size of the foreign body and its relation to delicate anatomical structures. Other diagnostic methods and treatment options of foreign bodies in the head-and-neck region are also discussed.