Branchial cleft cysts are common causes of congenital neck masses in the pediatric population. However, neonatal presentation of branchial cleft cysts is uncommon, but recognizable secondary to acute respiratory distress from airway compression or complications secondary to infection. We report a 1-day-old infant presenting with an air-filled neck mass that enlarged with Valsalva and was not as...

OBJECTIVE To highlight diagnostic and therapeutic issues about Rathke cleft cysts for otorhinolaryngologists. STUDY DESIGN Retrospective. METHODS We retrospectively reviewed data collected on Rathke cleft cysts between 1978 and 1998: presenting symptoms, visual acuity, surgical treatment, complications, recurrences, and effect on daily activity. RESULTS Twenty-nine patients were diagnosed...

Introduction: Rathke cleft cysts (RCC’s) are cystic sellar and supra sellar benign lesions which are thought to originate from the remnants of Rathke’s pouch. There are no specific clinical or radiological signs to differentiate them from other pituitary lesions. Presentation of Case: We report a 25-year-old female presented with hyperandrogenism and menstrual disorder, with the preliminary ...

Rathke cleft cyst is thought to arise from incomplete obliteration of the lumen of Rathke pouch. The cells of the anterior pituitary lobe, from which pituitary adenomas develop, are also derived from the cells of Rathke pouch. Although Rathke cleft cyst and pituitary adenoma have a shared ancestry, they rarely occur coincidentally. Rathke cleft cysts have been found incidentally in 11% 33% of p...

PURPOSE To describe the gadolinium-enhanced MR findings of Rathke cleft cyst correlate them with the surgical findings, and define those preoperative findings that differentiate this lesion from other sellar and juxtasellar tumors. METHODS We studied 18 patients who were diagnosed as having Rathke cleft cyst pathologically. These patients were imaged with T1- and T2-weighted coronal and sagit...

INTRODUCTION Rathke's cleft cysts are cystic sellar and suprasellar lesions, characteristically lined by a single layer of ciliated cuboidal or columnar epithelium. CLINICAL PICTURE We report 2 patients who presented with gastrointestinal symptoms and were initially investigated for dyspepsia. However, attention was subsequently drawn to persistent hyponatraemia that led to the diagnosis of p...

We report a rare case of papillary thyroid carcinoma incidentally found within a branchial cleft cyst. Only four other cases have been described in the literature. A total thyroidectomy and selective neck dissection was performed, and no evidence of occult primary disease was found after review of fine sections. Branchial cleft cysts are the most common lateral neck masses. Ectopic thyroid tiss...

Branchial cleft anomalies are congenital developmental defects that typically present as a soft fluctuant mass or fistulous tract along the anterior border of the sternocleidomastoid muscle. However, branchial anomalies can manifest atypically, presenting diagnostic and therapeutic challenges. Error or delay in diagnosis can lead to complications, recurrences, and even life-threatening emergenc...