Giant macroglossia with persistent nonocclusion in a neonate

Abstract

Excessive enlargement of the tongue, macroglossia, is a well-recognised clinical condition which can pose signifi cant social and health problems. We report a case of a neonate who was born with a tongue grossly enlarged to the point of inability to feed and deformation of the jaw. Despite surgical reduction of the tongue to normal size, there was a persistent nonocclusion of the mouth, making sucking impossible. Physiotherapy did not help and our experience with neonatal jaw osteotomy is limited. We wonder if a prenatal aspiration of the tongue cyst could have forestalled this jaw deformation.

Key words: Jaw deformation, macroglossia, neonate