The diagnosis of a cervical tumefaction in children

Neck pathology in children involves many diseases with similar clinical expression. Different disorders in paediatric practice may be clinically manifested by a cervical tumefaction. The cervical tumefaction can be represented by adenopathies or tumors. Cervical adenopathies may be unilateral or bilateral; the cause of their occurrence may be infectious, inflammatory, tumoral or may be associated with rare diseases. Tumoral cervical tumefactions can be represented by: congenital cervical cysts and fistulae, cystic lymphangiomas, thyroid swellings, malformations and cervical tumors detected antenatally. A correct diagnosis is established after a complete clinical and paraclinical assessment. In this article the authors make a review of the types of cervical tumefactions in children, emphasising the diagnostic protocol.