Cervical bronchogenic cyst diagnosed prenatally

Abstract

Abstract Bronchogenic cysts are congenital malformations caused by abnormal lung buds. Almost all bronchogenic cysts are found in the thoracic cavity but rarely in the neck. We report a rare case of a cervical bronchogenic cyst diagnosed in the fetal stage. A male baby with a cervical cyst detected at 20 weeks of gestation was suspected of having a 4-cm cystic lymphatic malformation and was subsequently delivered via normal vaginal delivery at 37 weeks. At birth, no symptoms, apart from the palpable elastic tumor mass (3 cm in diameter) on the left side of the neck, were observed. He was followed-up for observation. The cyst contracted at 4 months of age. However, at one year and 4 months of age, the cyst started to grow again without symptomatic manifestations. Cystectomy was performed at 1 year and 11 months of age, and the cyst was diagnosed histologically as a bronchogenic cyst. The postoperative course was uneventful, except for transient recurrent nerve paralysis, which improved 4 months after surgery. No signs of cyst recurrence were observed at the 1-year follow-up. Our case shows that bronchogenic cysts should be considered as a differential diagnosis of cervical cystic disease found before birth.