Cervical nodular fasciitis in a 17-month-old child

Abstract

SUMMARYNodular fasciitis (NF) is an uncommon fibroblastic proliferation that usually arises in the extremities or trunk, less frequently in the head and neck region. It is frequently mistaken for a malignant tumour owing to its rapid growth, but it is ultimately a benign condition with spontaneous regression. We describe a case of a 17-month-old African girl with cervical NF in which spontaneous and complete regression of the lesion occurred following the diagnosis by fine needle aspiration cytology. We emphasise the importance of making an accurate and timely diagnosis, and the imperative role of fine needle aspiration cytology in this process, potentially avoiding further unnecessary surgical procedures. BACKGROUND

Pediatric Nodular Fasciitis in the Head and Neck

“…21 When the lesion is rapidly growing and accompanied by fever and upper respiratory tract symptoms, these lesions may be mistaken for reactive or infectious adenitis on imaging. 22 Given the rarity of nodular fasciitis and the nonspecific imaging findings, the diagnosis is rarely entertained before surgery. Regardless of this, we recommend preoperative imaging (either MRI or CT) to characterize the lesion, assess the extent of the mass, detect associated bone remodeling or destruction, and to exclude other pathologic entities that may require different management.…”

Nodular fasciitis in cervicofacial region: a rare case description and literature review

“…The gold standard therapy is surgical resection as documented by the literature 1,2,5–59 . In five cases, the authors preferred a wait‐and‐see approach, 3,11,60,61 while in another seven cases, the authors reported a spontaneous regression of the pathology 42 . In five cases, in which the location was superficial, CO2‐laser therapy with the pinhole technique was preferred 11 .…”

“…Vincenzo Abbate 1 | Giovanni Dell'Aversana Orabona 1 | Giovanni Audino 1 | Antonio Romano 1 | Paola Bonavolontà 1 | Daniela Russo 2 | Silvia Varricchio 2 | Roberto Ferrigno 1 | Giorgio Iaconetta 3 | Luigi Califano 1 and functional results. Herein, we introduce the technical description of a novel minimally invasive approach for nodular fasciitis removal, and present a literature review.…”

“…A rapid growth, high cellularity and infiltrative borders are the main characteristics of nodular fasciitis. [1][2][3][4] It is most commonly localized on the upper extremities and trunk, and generally presents between the 2nd and 4th decade of life. Although the cervicofacial region is the second most frequent location of nodular fasciitis (13-20% of cases, with a greater prevalence in the paediatric population), to date, there are no reviews of the literature that analyse all the cases reported in this anatomical region.…”

“…Its pathogenesis is still unknown, although some authors have described trauma as a predisposition to this pathology. A rapid growth, high cellularity and infiltrative borders are the main characteristics of nodular fasciitis 1–4 . It is most commonly localized on the upper extremities and trunk, and generally presents between the 2nd and 4th decade of life.…”