Morphological study of the parotid lymph nodes.

The surgical resection of metastatic lesions of the parotid gland is controversial. The present anatomical study has been carried out to determine whether or not lymph nodes are present in the deep lobe of the gland and to assess their number in different age groups. We found a substantial number of lymph nodes in the deep lobe of the parotid gland independently of the subject's age. It can be concluded that from a strictly morphological point of view, superficial parotidectomy does not appear adequate when radical neck dissection including the parotid gland is to be done.