neck swellings
Last reviewed 01/2018
- swellings in the neck (1)
- are frequently encountered among both children and adults
- a detailed history and a thorough physical examination
is necessary
- key points in the history and examination are
- age
- site
- size
- duration of the mass
- key points in the history and examination are
- causes
of neck swellings seen in different age groups include (1)
- children - congenital masses, like branchial anomalies (branchial cleft cyst or sinus) and thyroglossal duct cysts (2)
- young adults- inflammatory and infectious neck masses e.g. cervical adenitis
- older adults - benign and malignant neoplasms (1)
- congenital anomalies, which are more common in children, should also be considered in the differential diagnosis of neck masses in adults (1)
- only swellings which are deep to the deep cervical fascia
are specific to the neck
- the deep cervical fascia envelopes the sternocleidomastoid muscles
- tensing of these muscles will tend to obscure deeper masses
- techniques
for evaluating these masses include (1)
- fine-needle aspiration and biopsy (cytology)
- contrast-enhanced computed tomographic scanning
Reference:
clinical examination of neck swellings