• Advances in pediatric surgery
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• v.9 no.1
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• pp.1-5
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• 2003

Preauricular sinus and preauricular skin tag are common childhood congenital anomalies. It is important for the pediatric surgeon to be familiar with the embryology and differentiation of head and neck structure to accurately diagnose and treat these lesions. Seventy eight patients with preauricular sinus and twenty-eight with preauricular skin tag treated in the Department of Pediatric Surgery at Hanyang University Hospital from January 1981 to May 2002 were reviewed to determine relative frequency, clinical classification and appropriate treatment. The male to female ratio of preauricular sinus was 1:1.2, and preauricular skin tag was 1:1. The most commonly presenting age of sinus and skin tag was before 5 year (62.8%) and before 1 year (53.6%). Twenty nine of 78 cases of preauricular sinuses were on the left, 25 on the right and 24 bilateral. Signs of infection were seen in 73.0% of patients with preauricular sinus at operation. Only 31.3% of lesions were infected in patients less than one year of age, but 89.5% between 3-5 years and 100% between 5-8 years. Cartilage was present in five patients with preauricular skin tag. Although re-operation due to wound infection was necessary in four cases, no recurrences were found. The preauricular sinus is a common anomaly in childhood, and has had a relatively high recurrence rate. But most of the recurrences were due to incomplete resection because of combined infection. Initial proper diagnosis and early operation are very important. Identification of the exact anatomical location of sinus tract is necessary because total excision of the lesions including those tracts is the only way to prevent recurrence.

• Archives of Craniofacial Surgery
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• v.16 no.2
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• pp.63-66
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• 2015

Background: Preauricular sinuses represent a common congenital abnormality in children. Classically, a preauricular sinus manifests as a small opening, usually near the anterior limb of ascending helix. The difficulty in the surgical treatment of preauricular sinus is the high recurrence rate. The aim of this article is to review the outcomes of preauricular sinus and to introduce our surgical technique and its prognosis. Methods: A single-institutional retrospective review was performed for all patients who had undergone excision of congenital periauricular sinus between October 2007 and April 2014. Medical records were reviewed for demographic information, wound complication, and recurrence rate. The sinus tract was visualized with the aid of preoperative dye instillation and intraoperative probe insertion. The skin next to the sinus opening was incised elliptically, and the tract itself was dissected medially to the end of the sinus tract and posteriorly to the cartilage of the ascending helix. Results: The review identified 44 patients for a total of 57 preauricular sinus tracts. The mean age at time of operation was 16.3 years with a range from 9 months to 65 years. Unilateral preauricular sinus tract was present in 31 patients (11 right and 20 left preauricular tract), and 13 patients had bilateral sinus tract. None of the patients had experienced wound issues postoperative, and there were no recurrent sinus tract formation or infection. Conclusion: Using a combination of dye instillation, probe insertion, and modified dissection, we were able to achieve a recurrence free series of preauricular sinus tract excision among a heterogenous group of patients. A large patient series is necessary to replicate the results of this study.

• Advances in pediatric surgery
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• v.7 no.1
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• pp.7-14
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• 2001

Congenital anomalies of the head and neck region such as preauricular sinus and skin tag, thyroglossal duct cyst, branchial anomaly, cystic hygroma and dermoid cyst are common in pediatric population. It is important for pediatricians and pediatric surgeons to be familiar with the embryology and the anatomical characteristic of these lesions in order to diagnose and treat them properly. Three hundred and nineteen patients with congenital head and neck anomalies treated at Hanyang University Hospital between 1980 and 1999 were reviewed to determine the relative frequency of the anomalies and to analyze the method of management. Eight-four (25.1 %) of 335 lesions were preauricular sinus and skin tag, 81 (24.2 %) were thyroglossal duct cyst, 81 (24.2 %) branchial anomaly, 58 (17.3 %) cystic hygroma and 31 were (9.2 %) dermoid cyst. The male-to-female ratio was 1.4:1. Thyroglossal duct cyst most commonly present at 3-5years, however branchial anomalies commonly are diagnosed in children younger than 1 year. Preauricular sinus showed familial tendency in three patients and was bilateral is 33.8 %. Most head and neck anomalies in children have specific clinical and anatomical characterics. A careful history and physical examination is very useful for diagnosis and proper management. Experienced pediatric surgeons should do the initial surgery since the recurrence rate after incomplete surgical excision can be high.

• Archives of Craniofacial Surgery
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• v.18 no.4
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• pp.287-291
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• 2017

Preauricular sinus is a congenital malformation that is very commonly encountered among the general population and it has especially high prevalence among Asians when compared to other ethnic groups. It can often go unnoticed or easily overlooked by the patient or even by doctors because most of them are asymptomatic and is most of the time only a tiny pit that can be trivial in terms of aesthetics. We report a very rare and unique case that has no precedence what so ever; hence no reported case in the literature: an ectopic preauricular sinus in a facial cleft and microsomia patient.

• Archives of Plastic Surgery
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• v.41 no.1
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• pp.45-49
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• 2014

Background Preauricular sinuses are congenital abnormalities caused by a failure of fusion of the primitive tubercles from which the pinna is formed. When persistent or recurring inflammation occurs, surgical excision of the infected tissue should be considered. Preauricular defects inevitably occur as a result of excisions and are often difficult to resolve with a simple suture; a more effective reconstruction technique is required for treating these defects. Methods After total excision of a preauricular sinus, the defect was closed by a plastic surgeon. Based on the depth of the defect and the degree of tension when apposing the wound margins, the surgeon determined whether to use primary closure or a posterior auricular flap. Results A total of 28 cases were examined. In 5 cases, including 2 reoperations for dehiscence after primary repair, reconstruction was performed using posterior auricular transposition flaps. In 16 cases of primary closure, the defects were closed using simple sutures, and in 7 cases, closure was performed after wide undermining. Conclusions If a preauricular defect is limited to the subcutaneous layer and the margins can be easily approximated, primary closure by only simple suturing may be used to perform the repair. If the defect is deep enough to expose the perichondrium or if there is tension when apposing the wound margins, wide undermining should be performed before primary closure. If the extent of the excision exposes cartilage, the procedure follows dehiscence of the primary repair, or the tissue is not sufficiently healthy, the surgeon should use a posterior auricular flap.

• Archives of Plastic Surgery
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• v.33 no.3
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• pp.313-318
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• 2006

The preauricular fistula is a congenital malformation of the ear with a small opening in the preauricular area. In general, this malformation should be treated by excision after its infection is brought under control with antibiotics. For cosmetic consideration, we performed a elliptic incision around opening, and then we dissected along the fistula tract to the cyst without sacrificing too much soft tissues. From March 2001 to March 2005, 90 patients with 102 cases of fistulas were excised including a small portion of auricular perichondrium and cartilage, where they adhered closely. Then, histologic findings of preauricular fistula were studied. The histologic findings reveal that the fistular tract is very close to auricular cartilage, and the thickness of fistular epithelium and perichondrium are about the same. There was no specific complications related to this procedure. The recurrence rate for the excision with cartilage was 2 out of 102(2%). Results of surgery in all cases were satisfactory. It is important, in preauricular fistular excision, perichondrium and auricular cartilage should be excised to prevent recurrence.

• Archives of Craniofacial Surgery
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• v.24 no.5
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• pp.223-229
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• 2023

Background: Preauricular sinus (PAS) is a common congenital anomaly, and complete excision is recommended to prevent recurrence. However, PAS has a high recurrence rate as a result of incomplete removal due to the high variability of the sinus ramifications, making its treatment challenging. In this study, we standardized the surgical procedure to reduce the complications and recurrence rate and compared the postoperative results between the non-standardized and the standardized groups. Methods: This retrospective study included 97 patients (120 ears) who had undergone PAS excision by a single surgeon between October 2014 and September 2022 and underwent at least 6 months of follow-up. After October 2018, all patients were treated using the standardized method, which comprised the use of magnifying glasses, exploration with a lacrimal probe, the use of methylene blue staining, and excision of a piece of surrounding normal tissue and related cartilage in continuity with the specimen. There were 38 patients (45 ears) in the non-standardized group and 59 patients (75 ears) in the standardized group. Results: Recurrence was observed in six of 120 ears, indicating an overall recurrence rate of 5.0%. Recurrence occurred in five ears (11.1%) in the non-standardized group and one ear (1.3%) in the standardized group. The standardized group had a significantly lower recurrence rate (p= 0.027) than the non-standardized group. Conclusion: We defined a standardized sinectomy protocol and used it for the surgical treatment of PAS. With this standardized method, we were able to reduce the rates of complications and recurrence without the use of a long incision.

• Neonatal Medicine
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• v.17 no.1
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• pp.127-131
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• 2010

Supernumerary derivative (22) syndrome is a rare genomic syndrome. It is characterized by severe mental retardation, microcephaly, failure to thrive, preauricular tag or sinus, ear abnormalities, cleft and/or high-arched palate, micrognathia, kidney abnormalities, congenital heart defects, and genital abnormalities in males. In 99% of the cases, one of the parents is a balanced carrier of a translocation between chromosome 11 and chromosome 22. To date, there have been about 100 case reports of supernumerary derivative (22) syndrome. In most of the cases, supernumerary derivative (22) syndrome was the result of 3:1 meiotic segregation in the maternal 11;22 translocation carrier. We now report a case of 47,XX, + der(22)t(11;22)(q23;q11.2) resulting from 3:1 meiotic segregation of the paternal translocation carrier.

• Maxillofacial Plastic and Reconstructive Surgery
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• v.11 no.2
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• pp.19-27
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• 1989

Hemifacial microsomia is characterized underdevelopment of the TMJ, mandibular ramus, and associated muscles of mastication. The Maxilla and malar bones on the affected side frequently are underdeveloped. The contiguous parotid gland may be hypoplastic. Preauricular sinus tracts and tags may exist, along with underdevelopment of the associated external ear, and affected facial nerve and muscles of facial expression may also show dysfunction. Children exhibiting the more classic signs will be identified at birth. Little is known about the etiology of hemifacial microsomia. We have corrected surgically a 22-year-old woman with hemifacial microsomia. We have performed leveling Le Fort I osteotomy with iliac bone graft on the maxilla, reverse-L osteotomy and iliac bone graft on the right mandibular ramus, vertical ramus osteotomy on the left side, onlay bone graft on the right mandibular body, and augmentation genioplasty. The postoperative course was uneventful and restoration of facial asymmetry was achieved.

• Advances in pediatric surgery
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• v.2 no.2
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• pp.119-128
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• 1996

The survey on branchial anomalies was conducted by Korean Association of Pediatric Surgeons. A total of 173 cases were reported, which were managed by 36 members and cooperators during the three years from January 1, 1993 through December 31, 1995. The following results were obtained by retrospective analysis of the 173 cases of branchial anomalies. The presenting symptoms were cervical mass in 101 cases, pit with or without discharge in 71, cervical abscess in 47 and respiratory difficulty in 3. The average age of the patients with cervical abscess was 52 months. Seventy(79%) of 89 patients with branchial anomalies and a cystic mass had their first clinical manifestations by 1 year of age, while 40(51%) of 78 patients with only a branchial cyst had their first clinical manifestation in first year of life. Radiologic studies were carried out in 77 patients (43%). The preferred diagnostic modalities were ultrasonography(47 patients), simple neck radiogram(19) and CT scan(17). Preoperative diagnosis was correctly made in 156(91%) of 173 patients. Seventeen patients were incorrectly diagnosed as thyroglossal duct cyst in 5 patients, cystic hygroma in 4, dermoid cyst in 3, and lymphadenopathy in 3. There were no remarkable difference in sex and laterality of presentation but bilateral lesions were found in 9(5%) patients and unusual locations of the anomalies were the manubrium, left subclavicular area, median cervial area, preauricular and parotid area. There were 78(45%) patients with cyst, 52(30%) patients with sinus, 35(20%) patients with fistula and 8(5%) patient with skin tag. Embryological classification was possible in only 64(37%) patients. The 2nd branchial anomaly was present in 50(78%), the 1st branchial anomaly in 10(18%), and the 3rd or 4th branchial anomaly in 4(6%). Histopathological study of the lining epithelium(N=134) is recorded that 45% were lined with squamous epithelium, 17% with respiratory epithelium, 6% with. squamous and respiratory epithelium, 14% with inflammatory change. Lymphoid tissue was common(62%) in the wall of the lesions. Twelve(7%) of 158 patients had postoperative complications including wound complication, recurrence and facial nerve palsy.