Skip to main page content
U.S. flag

An official website of the United States government

Dot gov

The .gov means it’s official.
Federal government websites often end in .gov or .mil. Before sharing sensitive information, make sure you’re on a federal government site.

Https

The site is secure.
The https:// ensures that you are connecting to the official website and that any information you provide is encrypted and transmitted securely.

Access keys NCBI Homepage MyNCBI Homepage Main Content Main Navigation
Case Reports
. 2023 Summer;14(3):577-580.
doi: 10.22088/cjim.14.3.577.

Maxillary mucocele-A missed out

Sumitha Ramanadhan  1
Affiliations
Case Reports

Maxillary mucocele-A missed out

Sumitha Ramanadhan. Caspian J Intern Med. 2023 Summer.

Abstract

Background: Maxillary sinus mucocele is a rare form of mucocele and are usually under diagnosed due to its vague symptomatic presentation. It is caused by obstruction of the natural ostium and accumulation of secretions inside the sinus cavities. It is a locally expansile lesion and symptoms are due to pressure on surrounding structures.

Case presentation: A 45 -year- old female patient presented with swelling on the left side of the face for 6 months with left infra orbital pain. On examination the swelling was diffuse in the left side of cheek. CT scan showed a homogenous opacity completely filling the maxillary sinus with expansion of the walls which helped in diagnosing the condition. Endoscopic marsupialisation was done and the patient is under follow-up for more than a year with no recurrence.

Conclusion: Maxillary sinus mucocele is an epithelium lined sac filled with mucous secretions. They are expansile and can cause bony erosion of surrounding anatomical structures. It is mainly differentiated radiologically by the presence of air in the sinus cavity. CT scan shows homogenous opacity completely filling the antrum with no air shadow. The walls may be thickened or thinned out. Endoscopic marsupialisation of the mucocele gives excellent results with minimal recurrence. Maxillary mucocele being a rare benign cystic lesion is mostly under diagnosed. Hence, proper clinical examination and radiological evaluation help in early diagnosis. Appropriate surgical management gives a good success rate with nil recurrence.

Keywords: Marsupialisation; Maxillary sinus; Mucocele.

PubMed Disclaimer

Conflict of interest statement

NIL.

Figures

Figure 1
Figure 1
CT scan showing homogenous opacity with no air shadow and thinning of the infra orbital margin
Figure 2
Figure 2
Draining out of the mucocoele contents
Figure 3
Figure 3
Post operation maxillary Antrum through the widened ostium after 4 weeks showing normal mucosa
Figure 4
Figure 4
Histopathology of the lesion showing nasal cavity lined by stratified squamous epithelium, filled with fibrinous inflammatory exudates and desquamated cellular debris
See this image and copyright information in PMC

References

    1. Herndon M, McMains KC, Kountakis SE. Presentation and management of extensive frontnao-orbital-ethmoid mucoceles. Am J Otolaryngol. 2007;28:145–7. - PubMed
    1. Siwach P, Joy T, Gaikwad S, Meshram V. Postoperative maxillary cyst. Indian J Dent Res. 2020;31:157–9. - PubMed
    1. Da Silva de Menezes JD, Moura L, Pereira-Filho V, Hochuli-Vieira E. Maxillary sinus Mucocele as a late complication in zygomatic-orbital complex fracture. Craniomaxillofac Trauma Reconstr. 2016;9:342–4. - PMC - PubMed
    1. Myers EN, Snyderman CH. Operative otolaryngology e-book: head and neck surgery. 3rd ed. Elsevier Health Sciences ; 2017. Available at: https://www.amazon.com/Operative-Otolaryngology-Book-Head-Surgery-ebook/....
    1. Lal D, Stankiewicz JA. Primary sinus surgery. In: Flint PW, editor. Cummings otolaryngology: Head & neck surgery. 6th ed. . Philadelphia, PA: Elsevier Saunders ; 2015. pp. 752–82.

Publication types

LinkOut - more resources