Cervical cystic lymphangioma

¹Neuroradiology Department Head and Neck Hospital of Rabat, Rabat, Morocco

^&Corresponding author
Zakia El Yousfi, Neuroradiology Department Head and Neck Hospital of Rabat, Rabat, Morocco

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Our work is about a 34-year-old woman with no particular history who was admitted for a cervical mass which showed a substantial increase in size in the last 8 months. Physical examination revealed a fluctuant and painless mass in the right posterior triangle which was tender on palpation. CT scan of the neck showed a multi-loculated homogeneous cystic lesion located primarily in the right posterior cervical triangle, and extending to the right deep cervical spaces, underneath an elevated sternocleidomastoid muscle. The right jugular vein, while relatively compressed, was still patent. There was no contrast enhancement after intravenous injection. The patient underwent complete surgical excision by transverse neck incision and the diagnosis of lymphangioma was confirmed on histological examination. Cystic lymphangiomas are rare tumors of variable locations and their cause remains unknown. There is no racial or gender predilection. The most common site for the tumor is the posterior triangle of the neck. The clinical picture allows the suspicion of lymphangioma, CT more precisely determines the relationship of the mass with adjacent structures. However, the definitive diagnosis is only obtained with the final pathology.

Figure 1: axial CT section (A) and coronal CT section (B) shows a multi-loculated cystic lesion in the right posterior cervical triangle extending to the right deep cervical spaces