A difficult case of cystic hygroma

Cystic hygromas are uncommon congenital lymphatic malformations that commonly involve the lateral aspect of the neck. The treatment of choice of these swellings is surgical excision but at times, it becomes quite difficult to perform a complete removal because of the tendency of the tumor to infiltrate the surrounding structures. We encountered a similar case of cystic hygroma that was infiltrating the carotid sheath. We were able to achieve complete surgical excision without damaging the surrounding structures.