Kimura's Disease: A Rare Cause of Parotid Swelling

Kimura's disease also known as subcutaneous angioblastic lymphoid hyperplasia with peripheral eosinophilia is a rare clinicopathological entity. It is a chronic granulomatous disease of unknown etiology. The clinical presentation varies from subcutaneous swellings of the head and neck region with regional lymphadenopathy with salivary gland involvement to systemic manifestations like nephrotic syndrome. The clinical features are mild, rarely life threatening. The present article is a case report of Kimura's disease presenting as multiple swellings at the left temporal region, left parotid and bilateral post auricular region. Though the lesion is benign, the cosmetic disfigurement caused by the swellings was of significant concern to our patient. MRI Scan was suggestive of a parotid swelling extending into the temporal and post auricular region of the left side. Surgical modality of treatment was adopted- Superficial Parotidectomy with excision of subcutaneous swellings. Histopathological examination confirmed the diagnosis of Kimura's disease. The mode of presentation as multiple large swellings with the involvement of the parotid gland created a diagnostic dilemma, hence this article intends to consider Kimura's disease as a rare but possible cause of a parotid swelling.