▲ Professor Jeong Hyun Lee is performing ethanol ablation on a patient with a ranula.

Ranula is a cyst that forms under the tongue or jaw, resulting from a blocked salivary gland that causes saliva to pool like a fluid sac. Due to the possibility of recurrence or side effects even after surgery, ethanol ablation (EA), a procedure that involves injecting ethanol to treat the condition, is often prioritized for treating ranula. A team led by Professor Jeong Hyun Lee of the Department of Radiology at Asan Medical Center recently published a study that found that performing EA within one year of ranula onset can significantly reduce the recurrence rate.

The research team conducted an in-depth analysis of recurrence rates and risk factors in 57 patients who had undergone ranula EA at Asan Medical Center between 2009 and 2021, with follow-up for over two years. The patients had an average age of 26.4 years and the average follow-up period was 57 months. The results showed that 33% of patients who underwent EA experienced recurrence after treatment, with 86% of these patients having their first recurrence within one year of treatment. This proved that ranula is a disease with a high risk of early recurrence.

In particular, the analysis revealed the timing of EA as a factor affecting the recurrence rate of ranula. Patients treated more than a year after the onset of ranula had a 4.17 times higher risk of recurrence than those treated within one year. Additionally, the recurrence risk was higher when the ranula was larger than 5 cm. Of the initial 70 patients analyzed, 50% of those with ranula smaller than 5 cm did not experience recurrence within two years while the rate dropped to 24% in those with ranula 5 cm or larger for the same period.

Professor Lee stated, “Although ethanol ablation has been proven safe and effective for ranula treatment, I would like to emphasize that early treatment is necessary to minimize the risk of recurrence.”

The research findings were recently published in ‘JAMA Otolaryngology-Head & Neck Surgery.’