Lipoma of the deep lobe of parotid gland — a case report and review of literature

Abstract

Lipoma of deep lobe of parotid gland is a rare clinical entity. Less than 10 cases have been reported in the literature in our knowledge. Because of their rarity, they are not often considered in the differential diagnosis of parotid tumors. A case of 45-year-old man with an unusually large deep lobe lipoma of parotid gland is presented in this article which was surgically managed by total conservative parotidectmy. The clinical picture, radiological and histopathological features of this entity is being discussed here. Review of literature of this clinical situation has been presented in the present article.

Giant Lipoma of Parotid Gland

“…Lipomas of the salivary gland are rare entities with highest frequency reported in parotid gland [4]. They are the most commonly encountered benign mesenchymal tumors that are histologically similar to mature adipose tissue, but the presence of a fibrous capsule helps to differentiate them from simple fat aggregations [10].…”

“…CT shows a hypodense and homogeneous mass with uniform fat density throughout [3]. The normal parotid tissue reveals positive density, whereas lipomatous tissue will give negative attenuation (−50 to −150 Hounsfield units) [4,12]. CT scan sometimes does not differentiate between normal parotid gland and lipomatous tissue.…”

“…CT scan sometimes does not differentiate between normal parotid gland and lipomatous tissue. This information can be clearly obtained from MRI scan, which thus becomes the ideal radiological investigation for such tumors [4]. The normal parotid gland has a high fat content and is easily visualized on both CT and MRI, and therefore both techniques can demonstrate whether a mass in that region is intraglandular or extraglandular [13].…”

“…Rarely are lipomas seen in head & neck region [1][2][3][4]. In the head and neck, it arises mainly in the posterior cervical triangle and forehead.…”

Parotid Lipoma: A Case Report

“…In the head and neck, this tumor is not common [2]. Less than 15% (about 13% -25%) of all lipomas occur in the head and neck [1] [3], where they account for 0.1% -5% of all benign tumors [2] [4]. In the head and neck, it arises mainly in the posterior cervical triangle and forehead.…”