Obstructive Congenital Gingival Granular Cell Tumor

Abstract

Congenital gingival granular cell tumors (also known as congenital epulis or Neumann's tumor) are rare and always benign intraoral tumors originating from the alveolar ridge. They are typically seen as a mass protruding out of a newborn child's mouth. We report a case of a large obstructive congenital gingival granular cell tumor of the mandibular ridge. The intraoral mass was first detected on a 38-week prenatal ultrasound scan and resulted in neonatal airway obstruction. Complete surgical removal was performed with an uneventful postoperative course. Histologic and immunohistochemical assessments with antibodies against S-100 protein confirmed the diagnosis. The clinical and morphological aspects, differential diagnosis, histogenesis, and treatment are discussed.