All issues > Volume 53(1); 2010

Case Report

Korean J Pediatr. 2010;53(1):97-102. Published online January 15, 2010.

Macroglossia secondary to lymphangioma of the deep neck space: Report of two cases

Han-Gil HG Cho², Soo-Young SY Kim², Eun-Song ES Song², Joon-Kyoo JK Lee¹, Young-Youn YY Choi²

¹Departments of Otolaryngology-Head and Neck Surgery, College of Medicine, Chonnam National University, Gwangju, Korea
²Departments of Pediatrics, College of Medicine, Chonnam National University, Gwangju, Korea

Correspondence Young-Youn YY Choi ,Tel: +82.62-220-6646, Fax: +82.62-222-6103, Email: yychoi@chonnam.ac.kr

Abstract

Lymphangioma is a rare, benign, and hamartomatous tumor of the lymphatic vessels that shows a marked predilection for the head and neck region. When this tumor occurs on the tongue or mouth floor or in the deep neck space, blockage of the efferent lymphatic vessels can result in secondary macroglossia. We report here two patients who showed unusual macroglossia from birth. Initially, there was no noticeable cervical or mandibular swelling. However, mandibular swellings were noted during follow-up examinations, which led to MRI scans on the two infant patients at 5 months and 5 weeks of age, respectively. Subsequently, both patients were diagnosed with lymphangioma or lymphangiohemangioma in the deep neck space.

Keywords :Macroglossia, Lymphangioma, Cervical