EVALUATION OF CERVICAL LYMPH NODES IN DENTISTRY BY ULTRASONOGRAPHY: A RETROSPECTIVE STUDY

Abstract

Objective: Cervical lymph nodes are often involved in some disease states. The most common causes of cervical lymphadenopathy are tuberculosis, distant metastasis, and lymphoma. Ultrasonography is often used to map and characterize cervical lymph nodes. This study was designed to evaluate the role of ultrasonography in imaging cervical lymph nodes in patients undergoing ultrasonography (US) for various reasons. Materials and Methods: Among the patients who came to our clinic between 01.01.2020 and 01.01.2021, 25 people who had US for any reason and had lymph nodes in the regions where US was examined were included in our study. The lymph nodes of the patients were evaluated for 4-four different regions, right and left. Results: Transverse diameters of lymph nodes in the right and left submandibular regions were considerably bigger than the others. Conclusion: As a result, we think that ultrasonographic examination of cervical lymph nodes can provide important information in terms of diagnosis and, especially with the widespread use of USG in the field of dentistry, physicians can also examine cervical lymph nodes in the head and neck region to help make an early diagnosis of metastases of oral cancers or other primary cancers.

Keywords

• lymphadenopathy
• local lymph node assay
• ultrasonography