title: Toxoplasmosis presented as a submental mass: a common disease, uncommon presentation.
abstract: Submental mass secondary to toxoplasmosis is not common in clinical work. A diagnosis of toxoplasmosis is rarely considered by physicians. Here we describe a 50-year-old woman presented with a progressive, painful, submental and left neck swelling for 1 month. After having obtained an insufficient evidence from the fine-needle biopsy, the patient finally received an excisional biopsy which highly indicated the possibility of lymphadenopathy consistent with toxoplasmosis. Diagnosis of toxoplasmosis was finally established by a combination of the pathological criteria, together with the positive serological finding. According to review the clinical presentations, pathological characteristics, diagnostic standard and treatment of this disease, the article aims to remind otolaryngologists who are evaluating a neck mass should be aware of the infectious cause of lymphadenopathy and the possibility of toxoplasmosis.
authors.affiliation: Department of Otolaryngology-Head and Neck Surgery, West China Hospital of Sichuan University Chengdu, China.
authors.forename: Bo
authors.initials: B
authors.lastname: Li
authors.affiliation: Department of Otolaryngology-Head and Neck Surgery, West China Hospital of Sichuan University Chengdu, China.
authors.forename: Jian
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Zou
authors.affiliation: Department of Pathology, West China Hospital of Sichuan University Chengdu, China.
authors.forename: Wei-Ya
authors.initials: WY
authors.lastname: Wang
authors.affiliation: Department of Otolaryngology-Head and Neck Surgery, West China Hospital of Sichuan University Chengdu, China.
authors.forename: Shi-Xi
authors.initials: SX
authors.lastname: Liu
mesh_terms: D000890:Anti-Infective Agents / Q000627:therapeutic use; D001706:Biopsy; D004487:Edema / Q000175:diagnosis / Q000469:parasitology* / Q000628:therapy; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D008199:Lymphadenitis / Q000175:diagnosis / Q000469:parasitology* / Q000628:therapy; D008875:Middle Aged; D019547:Neck Pain / Q000469:parasitology; D011237:Predictive Value of Tests; D012307:Risk Factors; D012698:Serologic Tests; D014123:Toxoplasmosis / Q000150:complications / Q000175:diagnosis / Q000469:parasitology* / Q000628:therapy; D016896:Treatment Outcome
chemical_list: D000890:Anti-Infective Agents
keywords: Toxoplasmosis; diagnosis; lymphadenopathy; toxoplasma