Auriculotemporal (Frey) syndrome in late childhood: An unusual variant presenting as gustatory flushing mimicking food allergy

Auriculotemporal or Frey syndrome is characterized mainly by recurrent epis odes of facial gustatory flushing and/or sweating, limited to the cutaneous distribution of the auriculotemporal nerve. Although relatively common in adults following injury to the auriculotemporal nerve or parotid disease, t he condition has rarely been reported in children. Moreover, in childhood, auriculotemporal syndrome has been described mainly in infancy and early ch ildhood as a sequel of perinatal birth trauma resulting from assisted force ps delivery. We report a 13-year-old girl with a a-month history of recurre nt, painless, preauricular gustatory flushing without sweating, initially s uspected to be a food allergy. Detailed inquiry revealed a history of a bic ycle accident with mandibular condyle fracture 7 years prior to the onset o f symptoms. Our patient demonstrates an unusual presentation of auriculotem poral syndrome in late childhood as gustatory flushing mimicking food aller gy. Awareness of this variant is essential for prompt recognition, thus avo iding unnecessary laboratory tests, especially as this condition usually re solves spontaneously.