Sonographic Findings of Cervical Chondrocutaneous Branchial Remnants—A Comparison With Dermal Lesions/Cysts and a Literature Review

Abstract

ObjectivesCervical chondrocutaneous branchial remnants (CCBRs) and dermal lesions, such as epidermoid cysts or brachial anomalies, including lateral cervical cysts/sinuses or dermal sinuses of anterior chest lesions, are usually located at the lower neck at the anterior or posterior border of the sternocleidomastoid muscle (SCM). We aimed to demonstrate the usefulness of ultrasonography in the differential diagnosis and evaluation of CCBRs.MethodsWe evaluated 22 lesions of 20 pediatric patients, classified into CCBR and dermal lesion groups. We used Fisher's exact test to evaluate differences between these groups in terms of lesion shape (low‐echoic mass‐ or tubular‐like), whether the lesion was adjacent to/in contact with the SCM or not, and the presence or absence of a concave SCM caused by the lesion.ResultsOf the 22 lesions, 8 were CCBRs, and 14 were dermal lesions. We found a significant difference in the presence/absence of adjacency to or contact with the SCM (presence/absence of adjacency to or contact with the SCM in CCBRs vs that in dermal lesions: 6/2 vs 1/13, P = .002) and presence/absence of lesion‐induced concavity of the SCM (presence/absence of lesion‐induced concavity of the SCM in CCBRs vs that in dermal lesions: 3/5 vs 0/14, P = .036). The lesion shape (low‐echoic mass‐like/tubular‐like lesions) did not significantly differ between the two study groups (low‐echoic mass‐like/tubular‐like lesions in CCBRs vs that in dermal lesions: 5/3 vs 11/6, P = .624).ConclusionsCCBRs have a strong association with the SCM. These sonographic findings may be useful in the differential diagnosis of dermal cervical lesions.