Medical education Snapshots
Ear, nose and throat Neurology
Volume 205 - Issue 7

Neurofibromatosis of the tongue

Authors:  Basile N Landis and Urs Borner

Med J Aust 2016; 205 (7): 300. || doi: 10.5694/mja16.00549
Published online: 3 October 2016
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A 45-year-old woman presented with a painless mass in the tongue that had grown gradually over the past 20 years (Figure, arrowheads). She had café-au-lait spots and previous neurofibroma resections. Neurofibromatosis type 1 was also found in her father and two children. Recent speech problems made a resection necessary. Partial removal of the mass immediately improved communication. Pathological analysis showed plexiform neurofibroma without malignant transformation. Neurofibromatosis type 1 is an autosomal dominant disorder characterised by neurofibromas that can potentially affect every site of the body. Malignant transformation is rare and resection is indicated when functional or aesthetic impairment is associated.1

Figure

Authors

  • Basile N Landis1
  • Urs Borner2
  • 1. Hôpitaux Universitaires de Genève, Geneva, Switzerland
  • 2. HNO-ORL Inselspital Universitätsspital Bern, Bern, Switzerland

Correspondence: basile.landis@hcuge.ch

References

View this article on Wiley Online Library

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