[Anatomo-clinical considerations on surgery of the deep lobe of the parotid gland]

In the light of their first-hand experience in actual clinical cases, the authors review the problems of surgical anatomy of the deep lobe of the parotid gland in malignancy. After discussing certain differences between normal and surgical anatomy of the region, they explore therapeutic possibilities and conclude that also in malignancies involving only the deep lobe of the gland the treatment of first choice is still total parotidectomy with preservation of the facial nerve.