Ganglion Cyst of the Sternoclavicular Joint in an Adult

Abstract

Ganglion cysts are most common on the dorsum of the hand or wrist, but they canoccur in any part of the body. There have been few papers reporting ganglion cystsoriginating from the sternoclavicular joint, with most of these cases developing inchildren. A 76-year-old woman was referred to our department because of a painlessmass over the right sternoclavicular joint. The mass was excised along with the portionof the sternoclavicular joint capsule surrounding the stalk. Histopathologic examinationshowed the cyst wall to be composed of compressed collagen fibers without evidenceof an epithelial or synovial lining, which was consistent with ganglion cyst. To ourknowledge, this is the first report of such a cyst in an adult. We consider this to be auseful report for surgeons that treat mass lesions occurring in almost any part of thebody surface.