A case of second branchial cleft cyst with oropharyngeal presentation

Second branchial cleft cysts are the most common type of branchial abnormalities and usually found high in the neck. Oropharyngeal presence of branchial cleft cyst is very rare. We report a case of oropharyngeal branchial cleft cyst in 2-yr-old girl with about 1 x 1 cm sized cystic mass, which had not any specific symptom. It was removed completely under impression of mucocele and did not have tract-like structure. However, cyst had a squamous epithelium-lined wall with lymphoid aggregation in histopathologic study, which was characteristic finding of branchial cleft cyst. Patient discharged without any complication and there was no evidence of recurrence for 18 months follow-up. We review reported oropharyngeal or nasopharyngeal presentation of these cases in English literature and embryological explanation.