Neck dissection for salivary gland malignancies

Salivary gland carcinomas are diverse, and their biological behavior and surgical management are also variable and somewhat controversial. Cervical lymph node status is an important prognostic variable for salivary gland malignancies. Neck dissection should be undertaken if there is clinical or radiographic evidence of associated nodal metastasis in the neck. However, indications for elective neck dissections in a clinically N0 neck remains a controversial topic. This article describes indications for elective neck dissection in salivary gland malignancies, provides a detailed review of the neck dissection technique, and discusses postoperative management of these patients.