A clinical study of submandibular schwannoma.

OBJECTIVE: Schwannoma is a slowly growing benign neurogenic tumor that develops from the cells of the nerve sheath. The occurrence of schwannoma in the submandibular space is very rare.

MATERIALS AND METHODS: From January 2010 to March 2021, we reviewed all patients who had been operated on in the otolaryngology department over 11 years and found 61 patients diagnosed with schwannomas at the final biopsy after surgery. In these patients, only 3 submandibular schwannomas were identified, and their clinical characteristics were analyzed.

RESULTS: Three schwannomas (4.9%) developed in the submandibular space. The main symptoms were neck swelling followed by neck discomfort. All submandibular schwannomas were removed surgically with a transcervical approach under general anesthesia. Two patients, who were diagnosed preoperative submandibular tumors, were considered to have developed schwannomas from the lingual nerve, and 1 patient was considered to have developed a schwannoma from the hypoglossal nerve. There were no major surgical complications, including postoperative nerve damage.

CONCLUSIONS: Submandibular schwannomas are extremely rare, but they should be included in the differential diagnosis of submandibular tumors.