title: [Imaging diagnosis of tumor in parapharyngeal space].
abstract: OBJECTIVE
  To investigate the diagnostic value of CT and MRI in tumors of parapharyngeal space (PPS).
  
  
  METHODS
  The data of one hundred and thirty-eight patients with PPS tumor treated in our department during the period from January, 1988 to January, 2005 were collected and reviewed. Eighty-three men and 55 women were enrolled, not including patients with metastasis tumors in PPS or nasopharyngeal carcinomas invading PPS. The age varies from 7 to 73 yrs(average 44.7 yrs). Among the patients, 12 were operated for the second time because of recurrence. All the patients were examined by CT or/and MRI.
  
  
  RESULTS
  CT and MRI could provide the position, size, confine of the tumor and its relationship with cervical blood vessels well, which were important to operation schemes.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  CT and MRI before operation are valuable to the treatment of PPS tumors.
authors.affiliation: Department of Otolaryngology, Union Hospital, Tongji Medical College, Huazhong University of Science and Technology, Wuhan 430022, China.
authors.forename: Dawei
authors.initials: D
authors.lastname: Sun
authors.forename: Banghua
authors.initials: B
authors.lastname: Liu
authors.forename: Weijia
authors.initials: W
authors.lastname: Kong
authors.forename: Chengzhang
authors.initials: C
authors.lastname: Yang
authors.forename: Guangping
authors.initials: G
authors.lastname: Wang
authors.forename: Shengbin
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Bi
mesh_terms: D000293:Adolescent; D000328:Adult; D000368:Aged; D002648:Child; D005205:Fascia; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D008279:Magnetic Resonance Imaging; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D009303:Nasopharyngeal Neoplasms / Q000175:diagnosis* / Q000000981:diagnostic imaging; D010614:Pharynx; D014057:Tomography, X-Ray Computed; D055815:Young Adult