Emergency route diagnosis of mucoepidermoid carcinoma initially diagnosed as a temporomandibular disorder

Abstract

Salivary gland malignancy (SGM) can affect both major and minor glands and manifests clinically with various presentations. The most common type of SGM is mucoepidermoid carcinoma (MEC), which has been previously reported to be associated with symptomatology associated with temporomandibular disorders (TMD). This case report describes a patient with an aggressive form of MEC of the parotid gland that was initially diagnosed as TMD. In addition, the patient's MEC was diagnosed emergently based on development of acute clinical symptomatology. To the best of our knowledge, emergency route diagnosis of MEC affecting the parotid gland has not been previously reported in the literature.

Keywords: emergency route diagnosis; mucoepidermoid carcinoma; temporomandibular disorder.