Case of the Week
Section Editors: Matylda Machnowska1 and Anvita Pauranik2
1University of Toronto, Toronto, Ontario, Canada
2BC Children's Hospital, University of British Columbia, Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada
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March 23, 2015
Lingual Thyroid
- A congenital condition due to failure of the normal caudal migration of the thyroid from the foramen caecum down to its normal location in the neck
- Complete arrest with thyroid tissue located at the base of the tongue is most common (90%).
- Female predilection. Usually asymptomatic. Can cause dysphagia or air way obstruction in infants. Majority have normal thyroid fn, some are hypothyroid.
- Key Diagnostic Features: Hyperdense soft-tissue mass of the same attenuation as the normal thyroid in the midline at the tongue base or anywhere along the course of the caudal migration of the thyroid gland up to its normal location in the neck. Enhancement is seen following contrast administration. A normal thyroid is often present. Nuclear medicine scans can give a more definitive diagnosis. Rarely, a carcinoma can develop in a lingual thyroid.
- DDx:
- Hemangioma
- Rx: No treatment is necessary
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