Imaging diagnosis and surgical treatment of carotid body tumor

Objective: To discuss the imaging characteristics and surgical treatment of carotid body tumor.Methods: Retrospective analyses were made of the clinical data of 6 cases of carotid body tumor,including preoperative clinical findings,imaging features,surgical approaches,postoperative complications and follow-up.Results: All the 6 cases were diagnosed as carotid body tumor,1 by color Doppler imaging and dual source CT,3 by CT scanning,1 by magnetic resonance imaging(MRI) and 1 by CT and digital subtraction arteriography(DSA).Of the six patients,1 underwent removal of the tumor only and the other 5 with resection of the external carotid artery,2 of whom received suturing of the ruptured common carotid artery.Uneventful recovery was achieved in 4 of them,while hypoglossal nerve injury,recurrent laryngeal nerve injury and epilepsy were observed in 1,and adrenergic nerve injury in the other.No reoccurrence of carotid body tumor was found during the follow-up of 2 months to 7 years.Conclusion: Color Doppler imaging,CT and MRI may contribute to the diagnosis of carotid body tumor,but dual source CT scanning and DSA are the best diagnostic options.Surgical removal is the first choice for the treatment of the tumor.