A case of thyroglossal duct cyst of the oral floor in a newborn

• Published in: Japanese Journal of Oral and Maxillofacial Surgery Vol. 51; no. 10; pp. 497 - 500
• Main Authors: TODO, Kozo, MORITA, Nobuo, NAKATANI, Ken, OMATA, Tetsuji, FUJITA, Shigeyuki, KITA, Teruo
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: Japanese Society of Oral and Maxillofacial Surgeons 2005
• Subjects: difficulty in nursing; newborn; oral floor; thyroglossal duct cyst
• ISSN: 0021-5163; 2186-1579
• DOI: 10.5794/jjoms.51.497

Thyroglossal duct cyst is a congenital anomaly resulting from retention of a thyroglossal duct during embryonic development. Thyroglossal duct cysts usually arise at in the midline of the neck and are rarely found in the oral cavity. We describe an infant who was born with a thyroglossal duct cyst in the oral floor, which interferred with nursing. The patient was a 4-day-old male infant. An elastic soft mass was palpable in the floor of the mouth. The mass was clinically diagnosed as a thyroglossal duct cyst because of its cystic structure on computed tomographic examination. For treatment, the cyst was successfully enucleated via a transoral approach. We did not resect the hyoid bone. Histopathologically, the cyst was covered with columnar and stratfied squamous epithelium. Thyroid tissue was not found. There has been no evidence of recurrence as of 6 years after the operation.