title: [Diagnosis and surgical approach of parapharyngeal space neoplasms].
abstract: OBJECTIVE
  The aim of this study is to investigate the diagnosis and reasonable surgical approach for parapharyngeal space neoplasms.
  
  
  METHODS
  A retrospective study was carried out from the data of 24 patients, who suffered from paralaryngeal space neoplasms and underwent surgical treatment from 1998 to 2006. The follow- up was carried out from 1 to 10 years.
  
  
  RESULTS
  The patients had no specific symptoms initially. Most patients visited the doctor with cervical or submandibular masses and some of them with disorders of swallowing or speech. 87.5% of the neoplasms were benign and 12.5% were malignant. Neurogenic tumors and tumors originating from the parotid gland accounted the most. CT or MRI provided useful information such as their sizes, shapes, extents and the relationship between the neoplasm and surrounding tissues. The trans-cervical approach was used in 10 cases, the trans-parotid approach in 10 cases, the trans-mandible approach in 4 cases. One patient was dead, two patients were lost to follow up, the others had been cured without recurrence.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  CT and/or MRI are essentially useful tools for diagnosis and presurgical planning. Based on the trans-cervical approach, according to the size, origination and nature of the neoplasms, choose of the trans-parotid or the trans- mandibular approach for surgical treatment is reasonable. Supported by Natural Scientific Research Plan of Shanxi Province of China [Grant No.2006k09-G3(5) and 2005K14-G8(2)].
authors.affiliation: Department of Oral and Maxillofacial Surgery, Stomatological Hospital of Xi'an Jiaotong University, Xi'an 710004, Shanxi Province, China. zhkqian@mail.xjtu.edu.cn
authors.forename: Ke-qian
authors.initials: KQ
authors.lastname: Zhi
authors.forename: Wen-hao
authors.initials: WH
authors.lastname: Ren
authors.forename: Lin
authors.initials: L
authors.lastname: Zhang
authors.forename: Yu-ming
authors.initials: YM
authors.lastname: Wen
authors.forename: Yin-cheng
authors.initials: YC
authors.lastname: Zhang
mesh_terms: D006801:Humans; D008334:Mandible / Q000601:surgery; D010306:Parotid Gland / Q000601:surgery; D010610:Pharyngeal Neoplasms / Q000175:diagnosis / Q000601:surgery*; D010614:Pharynx / Q000601:surgery; D012189:Retrospective Studies