Lymphangioma and ranula treated by OK-432 injection therapy in children : A report of five cases

Abstract

We performed OK-432 (Picibanil^®) injection therapy to treat 2 cases of lymphangioma, and 3 cases of ranula (1 sublingual type, 2 mixed type) in children from January 2015 to December 2018. The therapeutic effect was disease disappearance in 2 cases, disease reduction in 2 cases, and unchanged in 1 case. The cases with disease disappearance were all cystic lymphangioma cases. In our department, the first choice of treatment for cystic lymphangioma is OK-432. For ranulas, first choice of treatment is OK-432 if minimally invasive therapy is desired. However, we perform sublingual gland resection if there is a strong hope of a radical cure in the short term. Regarding the side effects associated with OK-432, postoperative dyspnea may occur if the cystic lesion extends to the posterior pharyngeal wall or parapharyngeal space, and it is therefore necessary to consider the likely patient response before starting this treatment regimen.