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Ectopic intravagal parathyroid adenoma
Author(s) -
Daruwalla Jurstine,
Sachithanandan Nirupa,
Andrews David,
Miller Julie A.
Publication year - 2015
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.24068
Subject(s) - medicine , parathyroid adenoma , primary hyperparathyroidism , parathyroid hormone , adenoma , parathyroidectomy , vagus nerve , perineurium , surgery , anatomy , pathology , calcium , peripheral nerve , stimulation
Background Intraneural parathyroid adenomas are rare, with only 9 cases of intravagal adenomas reported. All but one of the reported cases was found after multiple neck explorations. To the best of our knowledge, we report the first case of nonsupernumerary ectopic intravagal parathyroid identified at primary exploration. Methods and Results A 17‐year‐old girl with primary hyperparathyroidism and nephrolithiasis was referred with a sestamibi scan reporting a left lower parathyroid adenoma. No eutopic parathyroid tissue was identified during full exploration of the left side of the neck. Exploration of the carotid sheath revealed a fusiform swelling of the vagus nerve at the level of the carotid bifurcation. Longitudinal incision of the vagal perineurium revealed a 7‐mm parathyroid adenoma, which was enucleated. The patient recovered uneventfully, with normalization of serum calcium, parathyroid hormone (PTH), and normal vocal cord function. Conclusion We believe that this is the first reported case of nonsupernumerary intravagal parathyroid adenoma resected at initial exploration. The vagus nerve is a rare location for a parathyroid adenoma, but one that should be considered, even during primary exploration. © 2015 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. Head Neck 37: E200–E204, 2015