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Updated: Jun 21, 2026

The Flexible Rhino-Laryngoscope for Awake Nasotracheal Intubation
Published on: August 2, 2024
Neonatal airway obstruction caused by rapidly growing nasopharyngeal teratoma
I A Maartens1, T Wassenberg, F J Halbertsma
1Neonatal Intensive Care Unit, Máxima Medical Centre, Veldhoven, The Netherlands.
Unlabelled:
A case report is presented of a rapidly growing congenital nasopharyngeal teratoma (epignathus) in a preterm infant, leading to severe upper airway obstruction. Prenatal diagnosis by ultrasonography did not reveal the condition because the tumour masses were initially small and there was no polyhydramnios. Epignathus is a rare cause of upper airway obstruction of the newborn that can grow rapidly in the neonatal period and should be treated surgically.
Conclusion:
Epignathus is a rare cause of upper airway obstruction of the newborn that can grow rapidly in the neonatal period.
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