Aneurysm of the Internal Carotid Artery Misdiagnosed as Cervical Paraganglioma; A Case Report and Literature Review

The aneurysms of the extracranial segment of the internal carotid artery are not common and are associated with severe neurologic deficits. They could be misdiagnosed with several lesion of the cervical region. We herein report a case of internal carotid artery aneurysm misdiagnosed as paraganglioma. A 23-year-old man presented with progressive growing mass in right enlarging mass in the upper part of the neck below the angle of the mandible. The patient underwent surgery by the ear, nose, throat (ENT) surgeon through submandibular approach with impression of paraganglioma but severe pulsatile bleeding was encountered intraoperatively. Two vascular clamps were applied and the patient was transferred to the vascular ward. Computerized tomography (CT) angiogram revealed a huge aneurysm of the internal carotid artery in the extracranial segment with injured wall. After 2 days of medical therapy the patient was transferred to the operating room and the aneurysm was repaired using Dacrons. The patient had an uneventful hospital course and was asymptomatic after 1 year of follow-up. Precise preoperative assessment and evaluation with different modalities should be performed to avoid fatal complications. Surgery is a safe and effective method in experienced hands for repair of such aneurysms.