ABSTRACT

Cosmetic injection of paraffin into cervicofacial tissues has been practiced in the past, especially in Asia, resulting in foreign body granuloma (paraffinoma). The purpose of this study was to describe the computed tomography (CT) findings of cervicofacial paraffinomas.

CT images of 5 patients (4 women and 1 man; age range, 54-80 years; mean age, 67.6 years), who had received direct paraffin injections into cervicofacial tissues, were reviewed retrospectively.

The lesions were bilateral and located in the subcutaneous fat layer of the cheek (n = 5), buccal space (n = 2), periorbital area (n = 1), periauricular area (n = 1), neck (n = 1), and nose (n = 1). The predominant CT features were speckled mass formation (n = 3), fat-density nodule (n = 5), high-density nodule (n = 5), nodular calcification (n = 5), and rim calcification (n = 4).

Paraffinomas in the cervicofacial region have specific CT features that are distinct from other soft tissue masses.

Keywords: face, neck, foreign bodies, computed tomography, X-ray