[CT analysis of 69 patients with nasopharyngeal carcinoma invading the Cranio-maxillofacial structures].
OBJECTIVE
To analyze the characteristics of involvement of surrounding tissues in nasopharyngeal carcinoma(NPC).


METHODS
CT images of 69 cases with preradiotherapeutic nasopharyngeal carcinoma were analyzed to calculate the rates of anterior spread(including pterygoid plates,pterygopalatine fossa, maxillary sinus, ethmoidal sinus, nasal cavity), lateral spread(including palatal muscle, parapharyngeal space, carotid sheath and infratemporal fossa), medial spread(including pharyngeal cavity, the contralateral side of the nasopharynx), posterior spread(including prevertebral muscle, cervical vertebra and clivus), superior spread(including sphenoidal sinus,foramen lacerum, foramen ovale, greater wing of sphenoid bone, petrous apex and intracranial region), inferior spread(including oropharynx, parapharyngeal space, soft palate, hard palate) respectively.


RESULTS
18 cases of in this series had anterior spread(26.1%); 53 had lateral spread(76.8%); 31 had medial spread(44.9%); 32 had posterior spread(46.4%); 14 had superior spread(20.3%); 29 had inferior spread(42.0%).


CONCLUSIONS
Lateral spread is the most common spread direction in nasopharyngeal carcinoma, followed by posterior spread, median spread, inferior spread, anterior spread, superior spread in turn.
Xie
Yu-zhi
YZ
Department of Radiology, Ninth People's Hospital, Shanghai Second Medical University, China.
Lin
Tao
T
D002277:Carcinoma; D005145:Face / Q000473:pathology; D006801:Humans; D008437:Maxilla / Q000473:pathology; D000077274:Nasopharyngeal Carcinoma; D009303:Nasopharyngeal Neoplasms / Q000473:pathology*; D009361:Neoplasm Invasiveness