Congenital Unilateral Agenesis of the Parotid Gland: A Case Report and Review of the Literature

Abstract

Congenital unilateral agenesis of the parotid gland is a rare condition with only few cases reported in the literature. A review of 21 cases in the available literature is presented in this article. We report on a further case of a 34-year-old woman with agenesis of the left parotid gland and lipoma of the right cheek. Clinicopathological characteristics of described cases in the literature were discussed.

First‐Trimester Nonvisualization of the Parotid Gland and Aneuploidy in Fetuses With Increased Nuchal Translucency

“…The parotid gland appears first, between the fourth and sixth weeks, as solid epithelial placodes in the developing cheeks, whereas the sublingual and [13][14][15][16] Aplasia and hypoplasia of the major salivary glands, and in particular the parotid gland, are rare developmental anomalies reported to occur either in isolation or in association with developmental facial anomalies of the first and second branchial arches, such as absence of other major salivary glands, dysfunction or absence of the lacrimal glands, hemifacial microsomia, cleft lip and palate, mandibular facial dysostoses, and ectodermal dysplasia, and with genetic anomalies. 6,9,10,[17][18][19][20][21][22][23][24][25][26] As in our study, aplasia of the parotid gland was reported in the pediatric and prenatal literature to be associated with trisomy 21. [6][7][8][9][10] Our study showed nonvisualization of the parotid gland as early as the first trimester of gestation.…”

“…The parotid gland appears first, between the fourth and sixth weeks, as solid epithelial placodes in the developing cheeks, whereas the sublingual and minor glands form during 8 to 12 weeks' gestation 13–16 . Aplasia and hypoplasia of the major salivary glands, and in particular the parotid gland, are rare developmental anomalies reported to occur either in isolation or in association with developmental facial anomalies of the first and second branchial arches, such as absence of other major salivary glands, dysfunction or absence of the lacrimal glands, hemifacial microsomia, cleft lip and palate, mandibular facial dysostoses, and ectodermal dysplasia, and with genetic anomalies 6,9,10,17–26 …”

An unusual case with a missing parotid gland: A case report

“…In most of these cases, the authors reported a facial asymmetry or a swelling of the contralateral parotid gland which was believed to be due to compensatory functional hypertrophy. [ 1 ] The present case is unique in this regard as it showed the contralateral parotid to be hypoplastic with the hypertrophied sublingual gland. Four out of the 22 cases analysed were noted to have ipsilateral accessory parotid tissue.…”

“…Bilateral agenesis is relatively more common and is associated with other developmental craniofacial anomalies. [ 1 ]…”

“…Their analyses found the unilateral absence of the gland to be twice as common on the left, in contrast to our case where it was on the right. [ 1 ]…”