Oropharyngeal teratoma in a child: a case report

Teratoid tumours of the oropharynx are notorious for obstructing the airways and interfering with alimentation. We report here a healthy 20-day old neonate who presented with a painless growth in the floor of the mouth from birth. In this neonate, the tumour interfered with breast-feeding but not with bottle-feeding which the child tolerated very well. At operation, the tumour was easily enucleated, weighed 6G and was histologically consistent with a teratoma. The commonest site for this tumour is the nasopharynx and only 26 oropharyngeal teratomas have been reported in the English literature. The differential diagnosis of congenital oral growths should include a teratoma.