Auricular pseudocysts: a systematic review of the literature

Background Auricular pseudocysts are benign fluid accumulations of the ear of uncertain etiology. Little is known about the optimal modality to successfully treat these lesions. No systematic review addressing auricular pseudocysts have been published to date. Objectives The aim of this study is to summarize all the published data regarding diagnostic and therapeutic challenges of auricular pseudocysts. Methods On May 28, 2020, a systematic search of Medline, Embase, and Cochrane databases was conducted. All the studies describing treatment of auricular pseudocysts, procedure description, outcome, and follow-up period were included in this review. Results After full-text article review, 74 articles were included, representing a total of 1,011 lesions. The commonly used treatments for auricular pseudocysts were deroofing (493 lesions), aspiration (284 lesions), incision and drainage (171 lesions), intralesional steroids (53 lesions), and observation (10 lesions). The highest cure rate was found with the deroofing procedure (97.2%) followed by incision and drainage (95.9%). The mean followup period was 6.7 months. Conclusion Surgical procedures (anterior deroofing or incision and drainage) showed the highest cure rates and should be considered as first-line treatment for auricular pseudocysts. Future adequately designed randomized controlled trials are warranted to compare the efficacy of the techniques described.