Presentation Is Key to Diagnosing Salivary Gland Disorders
ONLINE EXCLUSIVE Shankar Haran, MBBS; Presentation is key to diagnosing Saniya Kazi, MBBS, FRACP; Saliya Caldera, MBBS, BSc, FRCS (ORL-HNS) salivary gland disorders Departments of Otolaryngology and Paediatrics, Townsville Hospital, Queensland, Australia Initial signs and symptoms offer the best guide to next Shankar.haran01@gmail steps in assessment, testing, and treatment, plus any .com The authors reported no needed referral or multidisciplinary care. potential conflict of interest relevant to this article. aking a diagnosis of a salivary gland disorder can be PRACTICE difficult. Common presentations, such as a painful RECOMMENDATIONS or swollen gland, can be caused by numerous disor- ❯ Use ultrasonography M ders of strikingly variable severity and consequences, includ- for initial imaging of a ing inflammatory, infectious, and neoplastic conditions, for salivary gland. A which treatment can differ significantly, and referral for spe- ❯ Refer patients with the cialty care is sometimes necessary. following findings for further Yet it is the patient’s presentation that can aid you in mak- specialty evaluation: abscess, ing the diagnosis that will guide management. Consider that inflammation unresponsive to medical care, recurrent or acute symptoms often result from infection, for example, and chronic symptoms, suspected chronic or recurrent symptoms are caused more often by ob- neoplasm (for excision), and structive or nonobstructive inflammatory conditions and suspected sialolithiasis. A neoplasms. Diagnosis of an apparent neoplasm,
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