[Cervical ranula]

Three patients, 2 men aged 21 and 39 years, respectively, and 1 woman aged 29 years, presented with a unilateral swelling of the neck, with no accompanying symptoms. In the youngest man the diagnosis of a 'plunging ranula' was made after repeated fine needle aspiration yielded viscous yellowish mucus with a high amylase content. In the oldest man the diagnosis was made during the operation and in the woman the diagnosis was finally made after two surgical explorations in the neck. In all 3, no recurrence occurred after removal of the involved salivary glands. A cervical ranula is an extension of a pseudocyst of the glandula sublingualis. Important clues for the diagnosis of a 'plunging ranula' are: the simultaneous presence of a ranula in the floor of the mouth (or a history of one), a characteristic cystic mass in the submandibular space with an extension into the sublingual space on CT and/or MRI, and the aspiration of amylase-containing mucus. Excision of the sublingual gland as the source of salivary leakage is the therapy of choice in a case of 'plunging ranula', with drainage of mucus from the ranula into the oral cavity. As the 'plunging ranula' represents a pseudocyst without an epithelial lining, excision is not indicated.