A rare case of parotid gland lipoma arising from the deep lobe of the parotid gland

Francesco Paparo, Mauro Massarelli, Giorgio Giuliani

Annals of Maxillofacial Surgery 2016 6(2):308-310

Lipomas are the most commonly encountered benign mesenchymal tumors, but their occurrence in the head and neck is rare, even more at the level of the parotid region where they can be found nearby the parotid capsule, inside the capsule, or within the gland. In addition, lipomas involving the deep parotid lobe are extremely unusual. That is why lipomas are not often considered for differential diagnosis of parotid lumps. Concerning diagnostic tools, magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) is nowadays considered as the main imaging examination for parotid lipomas due to a characteristic signal intensity on T1- and T2-weighted images. Furthermore, even if the cost of MRI is nearly three times that of computed tomography, MRI is accurate, safe, and has few biological costs for the patient. In this reported case, MRI provided all information for either diagnosis or preoperative planning being the best diagnostic tool regarding tumor margin characteristics and surrounding tissues' involvement. Concerning treatment, surgical excision of parotid masses is always mandatory for definitive diagnosis, but it is challenging because of the facial nerve. For this reason, a well-established surgical technique is mandatory for success. The authors present a rare case of parotid gland lipoma arising from the deep lobe and discuss diagnostic tools and surgical technique.

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