Carotid Paragangliomas: Report of 3 Cases and Review of the Literature

Introduction: Carotid Paraganliomas (CP) are relatively rare tumors and usually benign. They appear as a cervical mass of slow and painless evolution, which is often responsible for diagnostic and management delays. Surgery remains the recommended treatment, although there is a risk of neurological and vascular sacrifice for large tumors. The objective of this study is to report our experience and to review the literature on the clinical features, positive diagnosis and management of CP. Methods: It is about a retrospective study of 3 patients with CP who had undergone a surgical resection as a treatment of CP over a period of 5 years from 2013 to 2017. Results: The study concerns 3 female patients without any significant family history. The mean age was 63 years. The tumor has evolved on average 13 years before its diagnosis. The patients were admitted for a firm and incompressible lateral cervical mass on the right side in 2 cases and on the leftside in one case. The surgical treatment consisted on a total resection of the tumor in all cases with a vascular graft interposition in one case. A sacrificed of hypoglossal nerve was required in another case. Pathological examinations of the 3 tumors revealed a benign histology of paragangliomas. The follow-up was simple in 2 cases while one patient presented a transient peripheral facial paralysis. Conclusion: The diagnosis of CP should be evoked towards any firm and painless lateral cervical mass having evolved for several years. Surgical treatment is curative for benign lesions, despite its risks especially in advanced tumors.