Salivary glands. Mumps, calculi and mucocele. Ref.: 59
Mumps is a contagious disease caused by a virus and located in one or both parotid glands.
It can cause swelling of the salivary glands, pain when chewing or swallowing, fever, headache and muscle aches. A blockage of the salivary ducts, such as by a salivary stone, can lead to a bacterial infection of a salivary gland, with symptoms such as swelling, pain, erythema and pain on palpation.
If the cause is a calculus, it should be removed to restore the normal flow of saliva. One technique may be by endoscopy. If the calculus is too large, surgical removal may be necessary, accessing directly into the salivary duct to remove the calculus.
An obstruction or extravasation of the minor salivary glands can produce a benign lesion called mucocele, which usually disappears spontaneously.
If this mucocele affects the sublingual glands, a larger mass appears under the tongue and is called a ranula.