J Korean Assoc Maxillofac Plast Reconstr Surg.
2002 Nov;24(6):530-537.
A Study On Differential Diagnosis And Approaches Of Lateral Neck Mass
- Affiliations
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- 1Department of Oral and Maxillofacial Surgery, College of Medicine, Chungbuk National University, Korea. kwkim@med.chungbuk.ac.kr
- 2Medical Research Institute, Chungbuk National University, Korea.
- 3Department of Oral and Maxillofacial Surgery, Hankook Hospital, Korea.
Abstract
- Most neck masses of specific cause occur in rather predictable locations within typical age groups. This allows a systematic approach to developing a working diagnosis and a differential diagnosis and management plan for the patient presenting with a neck mass. Pathologic masses of the neck will be divided into the following segment: 1.Masses of nonspecific location, 2. Masses in the submandibular region, 3. Masses in the parotid region, 4. Masses in the medianparamedian region, 5. Masses in the lateral neck region. The lateral neck region is the area posterior to the hyolaryngotracheal conduit, below the posterior belly of the digastric muscle and tip of the parotid gland, and extends down to the clavicle.The contents of this region include the large vessels, nerves and greatest number of lymph nodes of the neck,and lymph node metastasis in this region is usually from a primary lesion at the base of the tongue or elsewhere in the oropharynx. Common lateral neck masses include branchial cleft cyst, carotid body tumor, neurogenic tumor, panneck infection,cystic hygroma,hemangioma,lipoma and lymphoma. Especially lymphosarcoma, Hodgkin's disease, cystic hygroma, hemangioma and branchial cleft cyst and more common and often manifest in the young patients. Many head and neck disease processes manifest as neck masses. These conditions are treated by surgical excision, except for some inflammatory masses, and often those also must be excised before a diagnosis can be made. We retrospectively reviewed 5-year experiences in the treatment of lateral neck masses at our department to define better clinical characteristics of the masses and the optimal diagnostic and therapeutic approaches to these rare diseases.
