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Case Reports
. 2018 May 18;10(5):e2644.
doi: 10.7759/cureus.2644.

Adult Cystic Lymphangioma of the Parotid Gland: An Unwonted Presentation

Sakthivel Chinnakkulam Kandhasamy  1 , Thangadurai Ramasamy Raju  2 , Ashok Kumar Sahoo  1 , Gopalakrishnan Gunasekaran  1
Affiliations
Case Reports

Adult Cystic Lymphangioma of the Parotid Gland: An Unwonted Presentation

Sakthivel Chinnakkulam Kandhasamy et al. Cureus. .

Abstract

Cystic lymphangioma of the parotid gland is an uncommon congenital lymphatic malformation. Its occurrence in patients of advanced age is infrequent. Patients usually present with painless soft swelling, often having experienced a long duration of symptoms. Lymphangioma among the salivary glands frequently involves the parotid gland. When evaluating cystic lesions of the parotid gland, cystic lymphangioma should be included in the differential diagnosis in addition to Warthin's tumor, branchial cyst, cystic pleomorphic adenoma, and cystic mucoepidermoid tumor. Ultrasonography (USG) and magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) are useful in diagnosing cystic lymphangioma and help to identify the lesion. Fine needle aspiration cytology (FNAC) may show lymphocytes, salivary epithelial cells, and rarely, endothelial cells. FNAC is often inconclusive; this was the case in our investigation of the cystic lesion presented here of a 50-year-old woman who presented with a slowly growing swelling and a dull aching pain over the right parotid region for the past two years. On examination, there was a non-tender, cystic swelling of 5×5 cm in the right parotid region causing lifting the earlobe. There was no cervical lymphadenopathy or any facial nerve palsy associated with the swelling. USG of the parotid gland revealed a cystic lesion in the superficial lobe of the parotid. Results of FNAC performed on the lesion were inconclusive. The patient was posted for surgery and the cyst was excised. Final histopathology of the lesion gave the diagnosis of cystic lymphangioma of the parotid gland. The patient was kept under follow up for six months to watch for any local recurrence, but none occurred.

Keywords: cystic lesion; fine needle aspiration cytology; magnetic resonance imaging; ultrasonography.

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Conflict of interest statement

The authors have declared that no competing interests exist.

Figures

Figure 1
Figure 1. Multilocualated cyst arising from the superficial lobe of the parotid gland (arrow)
Figure 2
Figure 2. Pathological section showing the cyst wall consisting of fibrocollageneous and lymphoid tissue
Figure 3
Figure 3. Pathological section shows lining of the cyst that is flattened out
The cyst contains proteinaceous material along with scattered lymphocytes and macrophages.
Figure 4
Figure 4. Pathological section shows serous salivary gland tissue along with the adjacent cyst wall
See this image and copyright information in PMC

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