Epidemiological profile of non-traumatic emergencies of the neck in CT imaging: our experience

Purpose This study was undertaken to collect information on the incidence and distribution of acute, non-traumatic conditions of the neck at our emergency radiology department and to review the literature about this topic. Materials and methods We retrospectively reviewed 143 consecutive patients who underwent neck computed tomography (CT) for non-traumatic emergencies between 1 December 2008 and 31 December 2012. For each of the conditions identified, we defined the overall incidence, the incidence based on the site, gender, average age and age range. Results Computed tomography examination was positive in 125 out of 143 patients (87.4 %), 74 men and 51 women, with an average age of 51.1 years, aged between 10 and 90 years. We found 79 inflammatory/infectious conditions (63.2 % of positive cases, 55.2 % of total cases), 46 men and 33 women, with an average age of 47 years. Computed tomography revealed 26 newly found tumours (20.8/18.2 %), 19 men and 7 women, with an average age of 68.5 years, aged between 49 and 97 years. In 20 cases, 9 men and 11 women, with an average age of 57.3 years, aged between 21 and 90 years, we diagnosed other acute conditions: six cases of foreign body ingestion (4.8/4.2 %), five benign swellings (4/3.5 %), five cases of vascular disorders (4/3.5 %), and four cases of oedema of the larynx (3.2/2.8 %).