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(1) Background: Incomplete excision of vestibular schwannomas (VSs) is sometimes preferable for facial nerve preservation. On the other hand, subtotal resection may be associated with higher tumor recurrence. We evaluated the correlation between intra-operative assessment of residual tumor and early and follow-up imaging. (2) Methods: The charts of all patients undergoing primary surgery for sporadic vestibular schwannoma during the study period were retrospectively reviewed. Data regarding surgeons' assessments of the extent of resection, and the residual size of the tumor on post-operative day (POD) one and follow-up MRI were extracted. (3) Results: Of 109 vestibular schwannomas meeting inclusion criteria, gross-total resection (GTR) was achieved in eighty-four, near-total (NTR) and sub-total resection (STR) in twenty-two and three patients, respectively. On follow up imaging, volumetric analysis revealed that of twenty-two NTRs, eight were radiographic GTR and nine were radiographic STR (mean volume ratio 11.9%), while five remained NTR (mean volume ratio 1.8%). Of the three STRs, two were radiographic GTR while one remained STR. Therefore, of eighteen patients with available later follow up MRIs, radiographic classification of the degree of resection changed in six. (4) Conclusions: An early MRI (POD#1) establishes a baseline for the residual tumor that may be more accurate than the surgeon's intraoperative assessment and may provide a beneficial point of comparison for long-term surveillance. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Hearing loss commonly occurs after radiation therapy for an acoustic neuroma, and it is highly unusual for hearing to return after a prolonged period of time. We report the case of a 12-year-old boy with neurofibromatosis 2 who underwent fractionated stereotactic radiotherapy for the treatment of a left-sided vestibular schwannoma. Following treatment, he demonstrated an elevation of pure-tone audiometric thresholds and a sudden decrease in speech discrimination score (SDS) to 0%. However, 20 months postoperatively, his SDS suddenly and spontaneously rose to 92%, although there was no improvement in his speech reception threshold. We discuss the possible reasons for the unusual outcome in this patient. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]