Background and Objectives: The parapharyngeal tumors are rare and treated mostly by surgical removal. The preoperative diagnosis of parapharyngeal tumors is very important because the surgical removal of neurogenic tumor, which is the main
mass
in the parapharyngeal space, can induce severe complications. There are many diagnostic tools for parapharyngeal tumors and their effectiveness are variable. In this study, we focused on the diagnostic accuracy of each diagnostic tool.
Subjects and Method: We compared the preoperative diagnostic results with the final pathologic reports of 56 parapharyngeal tumors. Diagnostic tools used were computed tomography (CT), magnetic resonance imaging (MRI), ultrasonography (US),
and
fine needle aspiration biopsy (FNAB).
Results: The diagnostic accuracy of MRI, CT and US was 68.2%, 51.6% and 42.8%, respectively. The sensitivity (83%) and specificity (87.5%) of FNAB for neurogenic tumor are higher than those of MRI (75%, 50%).
Conclusion: These results suggest that FNAB is the most precise and reliable diagnostic tool and MRI is the most reasonable and effective imaging study.
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