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Case Reports
. 2021 Dec 22:9:2050313X211066648.
doi: 10.1177/2050313X211066648. eCollection 2021.

Parathyroid cyst: A rare entity

Mohamed Amine Chaabouni  1   2 , Imen Achour  1   2 , Wadii Thabet  1   2 , Moncef Sellami  1   2 , Slim Charfi  2   3 , Souha Kallel  1   2 , Ilhem Charfeddine  1   2
Affiliations
Case Reports

Parathyroid cyst: A rare entity

Mohamed Amine Chaabouni et al. SAGE Open Med Case Rep. .

Abstract

Parathyroid cysts are an uncommon entity. They are classified as functioning and nonfunctioning cysts. Cyst aspiration with detection of parathyroid hormone is a useful tool to confirm the diagnosis. Here, we report four cases of parathyroid cysts. One patient had a functioning cyst. Ultrasonography of the neck revealed a cystic lesion behind the left lobe of the thyroid gland in two cases and a right cystic thyroid nodule in two cases. The cysts exerted a mass effect on the adjacent structures in two cases without clinical compressive symptoms. Fine-needle aspiration with detection of parathyroid hormone in the cyst fluid was performed in one case (nonfunctioning cyst): intracystic parathyroid hormone level was high. Recurrence was noted 1 month after the cyst aspiration. All patients underwent surgical treatment. Our series is characterized by two cases of nonfunctioning intrathyroidal parathyroid cysts which are very uncommon. They are mistaken for thyroid cysts. After surgery, no recurrence was noted. We aim to describe the epidemiological, clinical, and paraclinical features of this condition as well as its therapeutic modalities.

Keywords: Parathyroid glands; fine-needle aspiration; parathyroid cyst; parathyroid hormone; surgery.

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Conflict of interest statement

Declaration of conflicting interests: The author(s) declared no potential conflicts of interest with respect to the research, authorship, and/or publication of this article.

Figures

Figure 1.
Figure 1.
Cervical MRI (magnetic resonance imaging) shows a cystic lesion (Red arrow) (45 × 41 × 35 mm3) behind the left lobe of the thyroid gland that exerted a mass effect on the trachea and the esophagus. (a) Coronal T2-weighted image: shows a hyperintense lesion. (b) Coronal T1-weighted image: shows a hypointense lesion. (c) Axial T1-weighted image after gadolinium injection: shows a hypointense non-enhancing lesion.
Figure 2.
Figure 2.
(a) A fibrous cyst wall lined by a flattened epithelium (HE × 50). (b) Parathyroid cells: clear epithelial cells (HE × 400).
Figure 3.
Figure 3.
(a) Intra-operative view of a PC which was adjacent to the lower pole of the left lobe of the thyroid. (b) Gross appearance of a PC (surgical piece).
See this image and copyright information in PMC

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