Clinical characteristics and comparative study of different modalities of treatment of pseudocyst pinna

The aims of the article were to study the clinical characteristic of patients with pseudocysts and to compare different common modalities of treatment and introduce the concept of observation in pseudocyst management. Twenty-eight patients were diagnosed with pseudocyst of the auricle between June 2009 and June 2011 in a medical college hospital. The patients were divided into four groups each of seven patients on the basis of primary treatment offered. Four primary treatments offered were simple aspiration, aspiration with intralesional steroid, incision and drainage with removal of anterior cartilage leaflet with buttoning, and lastly, simple observation and reassurance. All 28 patients were male with involvement of right side more than left and no one had bilateral involvement. Adults in the age group of 30–40 were commonly affected. Most of the patients had history of significant trauma by security forces. Most common site of involvement was scaphoid and triangular fossa. The best form of treatment with minimum recurrence was incision and drainage with removal of anterior cartilage leaflet with buttoning. Simple observation as a treatment option was found to be as good as intralesional steroids. Pseudocyst of the pinna is a benign condition of unknown etiology affecting the pinna, commonly encountered in middle-aged men. It is a rare condition and is hardly encountered in routine ENT practice. Bilateral diseases are uncommon. Most common site of occurrence is triangular and scaphoid fossa. Many modalities of treatment have been recommended in literature with varied recurrence and failure rates. The best treatment is surgical deroofing followed by buttoning with minimum recurrences. An option of simple observation for 2–3 months should be discussed with each patient and was found to be as good as intralesional steroids.