Tohoku J. Exp. Med., 2003, 200 (1)

Case Report

Two Cases of Plunging Ranula Managed by
the Intraoral Approach

HIROSHI HIDAKA,^1,2 TAKESHI OSHIMA,¹ SEIJI KAKEHATA,¹ KEN-ICHI WATANABE,¹
MASARU TOSHIMA,¹ HIDEAKI SUZUKI² and TOSHIMITSU KOBAYASHI²

¹Department of Otorhinolaryngology, Iwaki Kyoritsu General Hospital, Iwaki 973-8555, and
²Department of Otorhinolaryngology-Head and Neck Surgery, Tohoku University School of Medicine, Sendai 980-8574

Two cases of plunging ranula are reported. Treatment consisted of the total removal of the sublingual gland and evacuation of the cystic contents by the intraoral approach. The cyst remained just after the surgery in both cases, but then gradually regressed and disappeared within two months after the surgery. These findings support total removal of the sublingual gland as being the best method of treatment. We believe that complete dissection of the cyst with cervical incision as well as drainage of the cystic contents are unnecessary when the diagnosis of the plunging ranula is confirmed.

keywords —— plunging ranula; sublingual gland; intraoral approach

© 2003 Tohoku University Medical Press

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Tohoku J. Exp. Med., 2003, 200, 59-65

Address for reprints: Hiroshi Hidaka, M.D., Department of Otorhinolaryngology-Head and Neck Surgery, Tohoku University Graduate School of Medicine, 1-1 Seiryomachi, Aoba-ku, Sendai 980-8575, Japan.

e-mail: ZAY00015@nifty.com