Lymphangioma of the dorso-lateral tongue in an adult male: A rare case report

Abstract

Lymphangioma is a relatively uncommon benign tumour occurring due to malformation of the lymphatic vessels. Lymphangioma in adults is a rare occurrence. Intraoral lymphangiomas occur most frequently on the dorsal tongue and rarely on the palate, buccal mucosa, gingiva and lips. Clinically, lymphangiomas of the oral cavity usually have a plaque formed of small thin-walled vesicles and similar in surface to frog eggs. We present a case of lymphangioma of the tongue in a 34-year-old male who presented with complaints of painless swelling in his tongue with difficulty in speaking for the last 25 days. CT scan revealed a lobulated sharp-contoured soft tissue communicating with the superficial planes with minimum vascularity in colour doppler studies. En masse excision of the firm, solid erythematous mass was performed which microscopically showed multiple dilated endothelial lined vessels filled with a proteinaceous fluid and lymphocytes. A diagnosis of lymphangioma of the tongue was given.