Vol.95 No.7 contentsPRACTICA OTO-RHINO-LARYNGOLOGICA
Vol. 95 No. 7 July 2002
A Case of Proliferative Myositis Arising in the
Sternocleidomastoid Muscle
Noriaki Tanimitsu, Atsushi Hisayuki and Akira Nagasawa
(Miyoshi General Hospital)
We report a rare case of proliferative myositis arising in the sternocleidomastoid muscle. An 80-year-old man noted a left upper neck swelling on 9 May 2000 and consulted us the same day. A 4×6 cm smooth, stony hard, and fixed mass was palpable on the left side of the upper neck. CT scans and MRI showed an unclear boundary between the mass and the sternocleidomastoid muscle and a malignant tumor was strongly suspected. An aspiration biopsy was performed on 16 May, and the findings suggested that the mass was proliferative myositis or nodular fasciitis. Only oral medication of cefotiam and tranexamic acid was administered for use for 7 days before the diagnosis. After diagnosis, the mass was observed without any medication and it completely disappeared 7 weeks after onset. The clinical course and the pathological features of this case indicated the diagnosis of proliferative myositis. Proliferative myositis is a benign tumorous lesion formed in the striped muscle, and it is important to distinguish it from malignant disease. We considered aspiration biopsy to be very useful in this case.
Key words : prolifirative myositis, aspiration biopsy, benign tumorous lesion