What is a Vallecular lesion?
Vallecular mass lesions are uncommon disease entities with benign cysts being the most commonly encountered vallecular lesion by the otolaryngologists. The vallecular cysts are also called ductal cysts, laryngeal cysts, lymphoepithelial cysts, and mucous retention cysts.
Can a Vallecular cyst be cancerous?
Vallecular cysts are usually benign in pathology, and expose no immediate danger from a cancer prospective. However, with the passage of time, an increase in the size of the cyst might give the patient more symptoms. The treatment for vallecular cyst is surgical.
What is a vallecula cyst?
Vallecular cysts are benign retention cysts of the minor salivary glands. The commonest site is the lingual surface of epiglottis. They distort the epiglottis when they increase in size and eventually fill the vallecula. Blockage of the laryngeal inlet causing severe respiratory distress is an unusual presentation.
What causes Vallecular cyst?
Vallecular cysts are typically present at birth in the tongue base of affected infants. Some believe that the cyst develops because of an obstruction of a minor salivary gland while others believe that the cyst is a variant of a thyroglossal duct cyst.
Is Vallecular cyst congenital?
Vallecular cyst is one of the many described congenital laryngeal malformations including laryngeal cysts, stenosis, clefts, and webs. It is a rare cause of congenital stridor. Vallecular cyst is a benign form of laryngeal cyst that was historically first described by Abercrombie in 1881 [9].
How is a Vallecular cyst removed?
Treatment. Vallecular cysts need to be decompressed surgically. Surgery is performed endoscopically. Once the airway is secured with an endotracheal tube, the cyst is either marsupialized (widely opened) or removed using either microlaryngeal instruments or a laser.
What causes a Vallecular cyst?
They are also called epiglottic mucus retention cysts or base of tongue cysts and arise when the duct of a mucous gland or lingual tonsillar crypt becomes obstructed and dilates. They are caused by inflammation, irritation, or trauma.
How is a Vallecular cyst treated?
What is the function of the vallecula?
The function of the “depression” is to serve as a trap for saliva and occasionally food. Trapping the saliva in the vallecula prevents the swallowing reflex. At night, when a person is asleep, the vallecula traps the saliva so that the swallowing reflex is not constantly triggered.
Where is the Vallecula Epiglottica located?
The epiglottic valleculae are paired spaces between the root of the tongue and anterior surface of the epiglottis. Each vallecula is bordered medially by the median glossoepiglottic fold and laterally by the lateral glossoepiglottic fold.
What is vallecula in swallowing?
The wedge-shaped space formed between the base of the tongue and epiglottic is the valleculae. The valleculae and the pyriform sinuses are known as the pharyngeal recesses or side pockets, into which food may fall and reside before or after the swallowing reflex triggers.
What causes valleculae residue?
Videofluoroscopic swallow studies have demonstrated that when there is insufficient contact between base tongue and posterior pharyngeal wall, residue remains in the valleculae [26].
What is a vallecular mass lesion?
These masses may present as purely vallecular in location or appear as an extension from adjacent anatomical sites like tongue base including lingual tonsils, epiglottis, palatine tonsils, epiglottis, and the remainder of supraglottis. Literature review reveals very rare conditions presenting as vallecular mass lesions.
What is the prevalence of vallecular mass lesions in epiglottis?
Similarly, wide range of rare granulomatous, infectious, and neoplastic conditions of epiglottis can manifest as vallecular mass lesions. [ 1, 2, 7] Vallecula is an extremely rare site of lipoma, and very few cases are reported in the literature.
How long does it take for a collapsed vallecula to heal?
Three weeks later, the vallecula is normal and the patient says symptoms are reduced “50%.” The collapsed cyst with nearby unrelated and typical vallecular cyst requiring no treatment. The collapsed cyst with nearby unrelated and typical vallecular cyst requiring no treatment.
What does fluid signal intensity lesion on right epiglottic vallecula indicate?
A small well define fluid signal intensity lesion is seen expanding the right epiglottic vallecula at the level of the hyoid bone . It abuts the aryepiglottic fold and the base of epiglottis.