Analysis of 185 submandibular gland excisions

A review of 185 submandibular gland excisions over a ten year period is presented. The symptoms, physical findings, diagnosis on pathological examination and prognosis have been noted in each case to determine the incidence of neoplastic versus non-neoplastic disease. In our series non neoplastic disease of the submandibular gland was found in 141 patients (76%) with a large predominance of inflammatory lesion, while only 26 patients (14%) had a neoplastic lesion (6 benign lesions and 20 malignant tumors). There were also 18 (10%) patients surgically treated with gland excision for a glandular metastatic involvement from adjacent nodes. The significance of these findings is discussed.