OBJECTIVE: To determine the patterns of lateral cervical @entity3 and the incidence of level IIb lymph node @entity3 in @entity3557 . DESIGN: Retrospective medical record review. SETTING: Academic medicine. @entity1 : From March 1, 2000, to April 30, 2006, 46 consecutive @entity1 (38 @entity1 and 8 @entity1 ) with @entity3557 . INTERVENTIONS: @entity1 underwent 55 modified radical neck dissections for the management of lateral cervical @entity3 . MAIN OUTCOME MEASURES: All @entity1 had preoperative evidence of a metastatic cervical lymph node. All specimens were labeled and mapped by the operating surgeon to identify their levels. RESULTS: Among 55 specimens, 82% (45 specimens) exhibited @entity66 at multiple levels. The incidences of metastases at level II, III, IV, and V nodes were 60% (33 specimens), 82% (45 specimens), 75% (41 specimens), and 20% (11 specimens), respectively. Skip metastases were present at a low rate (6% [3 specimens]). Among 12 specimens (22%) with metastatic lymph nodes at level IIb, 92% (11 specimens) had disease at level IIa. The rate of level IIb lymph node involvement in @entity1 with metastatic lymph nodes at level IIa was 34% (11 of 32). CONCLUSIONS: @entity5 involvement at multiple nodal levels usually occurs when @entity1 have lateral cervical lymph node @entity3 . Neck dissection should include the level IIb lymph node whenever level IIa lymph node @entity3 is found. Level IIb dissection is probably unnecessary when level IIa lymph nodes are uninvolved because the incidence of @entity3 to level IIb is low if level IIa is not involved.

Level IIb lymph node @entity3 in neck dissection for XXXX .

@entity3557 :: ('MESH:C536915', 'Disease') :: ['papillary thyroid carcinoma'] @entity1 :: ('9606', 'Species') :: ['women', 'Patients', 'patients', 'PATIENTS', 'men'] @entity66 :: ('MESH:D004194', 'Disease') :: ['nodal disease'] @entity5 :: ('MESH:D009369', 'Disease') :: ['Tumor'] @entity3 :: ('MESH:D009362', 'Disease') :: ['metastasis']
@entity3557 :: (MESH:C536915,Disease) :: ['papillary thyroid carcinoma']
