Abstract
Congenital cartilaginous rests of the neck are rare cervical masses resulting from abnormal development of the branchial apparatus and are always present at birth. We repot two cases with cervical masses. Case 1 : A 1-year-3-month old boy was admitted with a left cervical mass. The mass was located at the lower part of the anterior border of the sternocleidomastoid muscle. Excision of the mass was performed. Histologically, the mass showed a compostion of normal hyaline cartilage in a fibrous stroma. He had no other malformations, but he had associated pathlogical conditions such as epilepsy, apnea and oronasal reflux in his neonatal period. Case 2 : A 3-year-4-month old boy was admitted with a left cervical mass. The mass was located at the lower part of the anterior border of the sternocleidomastoid muscle. Excision of the mass was performed. Histological findings were the same as that of case 1. He has no associated malformations or pathological conditions. Although congenital cartilaginous rests result from the first and second branchial arches, some of the cases have other systemic malformations and/or pathological conditions. When we manage patients with congenital cartilaginous rests, it is important to recognize the possibility of associated malformations and pathological conditions.
