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Mucocele is the most common clinically recognized disease of the salivary glands in
dogs. A mucocele is an accumulation of saliva in the subcutaneous tissue and the consequent
tissue reaction to saliva. The mucocele has a nonepithelial, nonsecretory lining consisting
primarily of fibroblasts and capillaries. The incidence of salivary mucocele reportedly is
fewer than twenty in 4,000 dogs. Although the condition has been reported in dogs as young as 6-months of age, salivary
mucocele occurs most often in dogs between 2 and 4-years of age. Salivary mucocele occurs more frequently in German
shepherds and miniature poodles.1
Trauma has been proposed as the cause of salivary mucocele because of the activity of young dogs and the documented
damage to the salivary gland/duct complex and the formation of mucocele. The inability to induce salivary mucocele
traumatically in healthy dogs suggests the possibility of a developmental predisposition in affected dogs.
The sublingual gland is the most common salivary gland associated with salivary mucocele. Sialography has shown
that the origin of the mucocele most often occurs in the rostral portion (that portion of the sublingual gland superimposed on
the mandible) of the sublingual gland/duct complex. Regardless of the location of origin, mucocele usually forms near the
intermandibular area (cervical mucocele). Other locations associated with the formation of mucocele because of a sublingual
gland/duct defect include under the tongue, which involves the floor of the mouth (sublingual mucocele), and the pharynx
(pharyngeal mucocele).
The clinical signs associated with salivary mucocele depend on the location of the mucocele. A cervical mucocele is
initially an acute, painful swelling resulting from an inflammatory response. Cessation of the inflammatory response results in
a marked decrease in swelling. A decreased inflammatory response allows for the more common presenting history of a slowly
enlarging or intermittently large, fluid-filled, nonpainful swelling. Blood-tinged saliva secondary to trauma caused by eating,
poor prehension of food, or reluctance to eat are clinical signs that can be associated with sublingual mucocele. The most
common clinical signs associated with mucocele of the pharyngeal wall are respiratory distress and difficulty in swallowing
secondary to partial obstruction of the pharynx.
Diagnosis of salivary mucocele is based on clinical signs, history, and results of paracentesis. Mucocele paracentesis
reveals a stringy, sometimes blood-tinged fluid with low cell numbers. Mucin and amylase analyses of the fluid are not
reliable diagnostic procedures. A chronic cervical mucocele may contain palpable firm nodules that are remnants of sloughed
inflammatory tissue previously lining the mucocele. Sialoliths are concretions of calcium phosphate or calcium carbonate and
may occur with chronic mucocele.
Physical examination and history usually denote the origin of the mucocele. Cervical mucoceles that appear on the
midline usually shift to the originating side when the patient is placed in exact dorsal recumbency. Sialography can be used to
determine the affected side if careful observation and palpation are unsuccessful. The most common indication for sialography
is to determine the location of a salivary gland/duct defect in patients with salivary mucocele. Sialography is also a diagnostic
aid when considering traumatic injury to one of the salivary glands, salivary neoplasia, a mass or fistulous tract of unknown
origin in the head and neck region, or a foreign body in the head or neck. The disadvantages of sialography include the need
for general anesthesia and the difficulty associated with locating the duct opening(s).
Various methods have been used to treat cervical mucoceles. Mucocele drainage, removal of the mucocele only, and
chemical cauterization of the mucocele have been reported. The basis for these therapies was the belief that a mucocele was a
true cyst with a secretory lining. The fact that a mucocele is not a cyst but is a reactive encapsulating structure has prompted
surgical removal of the affected gland/duct complex. The intimate anatomic association of the sublingual and mandibular
glands and their ducts requires resection of both structures. Another technique for treating pharyngeal and sublingual
mucoceles involves marsupialization. However, resective surgery is preferred for pharyngeal mucocele since life-threatening
upper airway compromise and morbidity from swallowing dysfunction (e.g. aspiration pneumonia) are potential complications
of conservative management or recurrence. Surgical removal of both the sublingual and mandibular salivary glands, combined
with drainage of the mucocele, has been advocated for treating cervical, sublingual, and pharyngeal mucocele and is described
step-by-step.2,3
A A
B B
A B
Figure 3
The diagnosis is usually made
based on cytologic evaluation
of mucocele fluid obtained by
paracentesis. Sialography may
be used to confirm the diagnosis
or the side of mucocele origin for
cervical mucocele (A and B).
Figure 5 Figure 6
The side of origin may be difficult to determine especially in small Surgical landmarks for resection of the mandibular and sublingual
dogs with large cervical mucoceles. The clinician may consider salivary gland duct complex(s) include the caudal mandible (black
bilateral resective surgery of the mandibular and sublingual salivary arrow), vertical ear canal (white arrow), mandibular salivary gland
gland duct complex(s) as an alternative to the time and frustration (M), wing of the atlas (A), and the larynx (L).
that is often associated with sialography.
Figure 7
Surgery for resection of the mandibular and sublingual salivary gland duct complex(s) begins with a skin incision from the caudal aspect of the
mandible to the origin of the jugular vein (A). The clinical case (B) shows a left-sided mucocele (white arrow) ventral to the mandibular salivary
gland (*). Note the prominent maxillary and lingual/linguofacial vein tributaries to the jugular vein (black arrow).
Figure 10
Intraoperative (A) and cadaver (B) photographs showing continued dissection and mobilization of the mandibular salivary gland exposing the
vascular supply to the gland from the medial aspect (arrow).
Figure 13
Dissection continues through the origin of the sublingual
salivary gland/duct defect (A), revealing the lining (arrow) of
the mucocele (B).
Author Information
Figure 15 From the Center for Veterinary Dentistry and Oral Surgery, 9041
The sublingual salivary gland/duct defect rarely occurs rostral Gaither Road, Gaithersburg, MD, 20878. Email: info@cvdos.com
to the lingual nerve (arrow) as it courses over the polystomatic
portion of the sublingual salivary gland (A). Therefore, the References
sublingual salivary gland/duct is transected and ligated in the 1. Spangler WL, Culbertson MR: Salivary gland disease in dogs and cats: 245 cases (1985-1988).
area (arrow) of the lingual nerve (B). J Am Vet Med Assoc 1991, 198:465.
2. Smith MM. Surgery of the canine salivary system. Comp of Contin Educ Pract Vet 1985;
7:457-465.
3. Taney K, Smith MM. Oral and salivary gland disorders. In: Ettinger SE, Feldman EC, eds.
Textbook of veterinary internal medicine, 7th ed. Philadelphia: WB Saunders Co, 2010;
1479-1486.