Abstract: PURPOSE: To discuss the clinical and pathological characteristics and management of parotid gland cyst. METHODS: Forty-five resected samples of parotid gland tumors were selected from Shengjing Hospital of China Medical University from January 2000 to June 2014 whose postoperative pathological diagnosis were parotid gland cysts. The clinico-pathological characteristics in different types of parotid gland cysts were analyzed. RESULTS: Of 45 cases of parotid gland cyst, 25 were males, 20 were females. The median age was 51 years old. 21 cases were located on the left side of parotid gland, while 24 on the right side. The main clinical symptom was painless swelling in parotid gland region. The sizes varied from 0.8 cm×0.6 cm×0.5 cm to 10 cm×2.8 cm×0.6 cm. Nine cases were accompanied with pain, and 36 without. 4 cases were seen with lymph node enlargement, and 41 without pain. The main treatment modality was simple resection of cyst without any injury of facial nerve. No recurrence was seen after following up for 1-10 years. Of the 45 postoperative histopathological results, 29 cases (64.4%) were simple cysts, 9 cases (20.0%) were polycystic disease cysts, and 7 cases (15.6%) were lymphoepithelial cysts. Besides the above-stated pathological manifestations, some non-specific microscopic changes were accompanied with parotid gland cysts, including tumor-like hyperplasia of fibrous tissue, inflammations, calcifications, synovial cyst-like changes, foreign-body giant cell reactions and granulomatous changes. CONCLUSIONS: The main symptom of parotid gland cyst is progressive enlargement, and simple resection of cyst is the first-line treatment without facial nerve injury or reoccurrence. The main pathological classifications are simple cysts, lymphoepithelial cysts and polycystic disease cysts.

Key words: Parotid gland, Cyst, Histopathology