Inflammatory Disorders of the Parotid Gland (Parotitis)

Parotitis is caused by duct obstruction (such as sialolithiasis), infectious organisms (viruses or bacteria), or inflammatory/autoimmune conditions [such as Sjögren’s syndrome, rheumatoid arthritis, systemic lupus erythematosus [SLE], and sarcoidosis]. Parotitis can result in pain and discomfort, glandular enlargement and swelling, dry mouth, and sometimes fever. Predisposing factors of parotitis include dehydration, malnutrition, immunosuppression, sialolithiasis, oral neoplasms, and medications, causing decreased salivation. This chapter discusses the etiology, clinical presentation, diagnosis, and treatment of the various causes of inflammatory disorders of the parotid gland (parotitis). This includes (1) viral parotitis (mumps, non-mumps viral sialadenitis, HIV-associated sialadenitis), (2) bacterial parotitis [acute suppurative (abscess), chronic pyogenic, actinomycosis, cat scratch disease], (3) recurrent parotitis of children, (4) papillary obstructive parotitis, (5) granulomatous parotitis (tuberculosis, sarcoidosis), and (6) autoimmune parotitis (Mikulicz disease, Sjögren’s syndrome, myoepithelial sialadenitis, other autoimmune sialadenitis including Wagner’s granulomatosis, Kimura’s disease, and chronic sclerosing sialadenitis).