Ear and audiology: temporal lobe abscess: practice question

A ENT question in the style of the NEET PG paper. Answer it first, then read why the right option is right and why each of the others is wrong.

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ENT · Ear and audiology: temporal lobe abscess

Sample item

A man with long-standing foul-smelling ear discharge develops headache and fever, then sudden difficulty finding words with fluent but meaningless speech. Which intracranial complication is most likely?

Original practice item, not a recalled exam question. Nothing here is recorded.

The answer and the reasoning

A. Temporal lobe abscess

Spread through the tegmen tympani most often produces a temporal lobe abscess, and dominant lobe involvement gives dysphasia. Cerebellar abscess spreads through the posterior fossa plate and gives ataxia and nystagmus. Fever, headache and a new focal deficit in chronic ear disease need urgent imaging.

Option by option

  • A. Temporal lobe abscess (correct)

    Correct. A new dysphasia after chronic ear disease points to a dominant temporal lobe abscess.

  • B. Cerebellar abscess

    A cerebellar abscess would cause ataxia, intention tremor and nystagmus, not a language disturbance.

  • C. Occipital lobe abscess

    An occipital abscess would produce visual field defects, not dysphasia.

  • D. Frontal lobe abscess

    A frontal abscess is related to frontal sinus disease and gives personality change and weakness.

Source note: Original NextPrep sample item — pending expert review. This item is original practice material awaiting independent expert review, so confirm important facts in a standard textbook.

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Questions about this ENT question

What is the answer to this ENT question?

The best answer is A, Temporal lobe abscess. Spread through the tegmen tympani most often produces a temporal lobe abscess, and dominant lobe involvement gives dysphasia.

Why is "Cerebellar abscess" not the answer?

A cerebellar abscess would cause ataxia, intention tremor and nystagmus, not a language disturbance.

Why is "Occipital lobe abscess" not the answer?

An occipital abscess would produce visual field defects, not dysphasia.

Why is "Frontal lobe abscess" not the answer?

A frontal abscess is related to frontal sinus disease and gives personality change and weakness.

What concept does this question test?

It tests Ear and audiology: temporal lobe abscess in ENT. Cerebellar abscess spreads through the posterior fossa plate and gives ataxia and nystagmus. Fever, headache and a new focal deficit in chronic ear disease need urgent imaging.

How hard is this question?

We tag it as an application question: it asks you to use a fact on a patient or a finding. The tag is our own editorial judgement, not an official difficulty rating, so read the reason for every option, not only the answer.

How should I study Ear and audiology: temporal lobe abscess?

Learn tuning fork results and audiogram patterns by sketching them. Then use the flashcards and the other ENT questions on this site to test what stuck.

Is this a real NEET PG question?

No. It is an original practice item (editorial status: sample, version 1). NextPrep does not publish recalled or leaked questions, and independent faculty review of this item has not been completed yet, so confirm important facts in a standard textbook.