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Histologic diagnoses in persistently swollen cervical lymph nodes
Author(s) -
Laffers Wiebke,
Eggert Kristina,
Schildhaus Hans–Ulrich,
Bootz Friedrich,
Gerstner Andreas O. H.
Publication year - 2012
Publication title -
head and neck
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 1.012
H-Index - 127
eISSN - 1097-0347
pISSN - 1043-3074
DOI - 10.1002/hed.21742
Subject(s) - medicine , malignancy , biopsy , cervical lymph nodes , medical diagnosis , lymph , radiology , lymphoma , cervical lymphadenopathy , head and neck , histopathological examination , cancer , disease , surgery , metastasis , pathology
Background Biopsy and histological examination of persistently enlarged cervical lymph nodes represent a major health care issue and have high impact on further clinical therapy. Tertiary health centers are faced with an increased demand for diagnostic workup to rule out malignancy. We performed a retrospective study from January 2000 to June 2008 to identify patients referred to us for diagnostic biopsy and to document the histopathological result. Methods Patients with a diagnostic biopsy, but neither clinical signs of head and neck cancer nor other malignancies, were identified within the records. Patient characteristics and histopathological diagnosis were retrieved. Results Three hundred twenty‐six patients were identified (146 women, and 180 men). One hundred twenty‐three patients (38%; 44 women, and 79 men) had a malignancy: 61 with metastatic disease and 62 with malignant lymphoma; the youngest was 15 years old and the oldest was 92 years old. Conclusion Persistently swollen cervical lymph nodes should trigger a thorough clinical examination and prompt biopsy for histopathological workup. © 2011 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. Head Neck, 2012