Kshirsagar et al reported factors predictive of a neck mass in an adult being malignant. This can help to identify a patient who may require a more extensive workup. The authors are from Kaiser Permanente Medical Center Oakland and Kaiser Medical Center Santa Rosa in California.
Patient selection: adult with neck mass
Prevalence of malignancy in population: 5% (rate 2% if under 40; 8.4% if >= 70 years)
Predictors of malignancy:
(1) older age (aOR 2.7 if >= 50 years; 2.3 if 50-59 years; 2.6 if 60-69 years; 3.2 if >= 70 years)
(2) male sex (aOR 1.3 in cohort with imaging; aOR 2.4 for entire cohort)
