Congenital epulis

• Published in: Journal of the College of Physicians and Surgeons--Pakistan Vol. 22; no. 1; pp. 56 - 57
• Main Authors: Rehman, Moghis Ur, Khanani, Muhammad Faisal, Bekdache, Gharid, Rehman Durrani, Naveed Ur, Jamil, Altaf, Rahmani, Aiman, Chedid, Fares
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: Pakistan 01.01.2012
• Subjects: Adult; Diagnosis, Differential; Female; Fetal Diseases - diagnosis; Gingival Neoplasms - congenital; Gingival Neoplasms - diagnosis; Gingival Neoplasms - surgery; Granular Cell Tumor - congenital; Granular Cell Tumor - diagnosis; Granular Cell Tumor - surgery; Humans; Infant, Newborn; Male; Oral Surgical Procedures - methods; Pregnancy; Pregnancy Complications, Neoplastic; Ultrasonography, Prenatal
• ISSN: 1681-7168

Epulis is a rare tumour, with female preponderance that is only seen in the newborns. It arises from the mucosa of the gingiva and protrudes out of the infant's mouth. It can potentially obstruct the airways and may require an EXIT (ex-utero intrapartum treatment) procedure which involves establishing an airway before the feto-maternal circulation is interrupted. We present a female newborn with such a mass, which was diagnosed antenatally. A multidisciplinary team including the neonatologist, anaesthesiologist and ENT specialist should be present in the delivery room to establish the airways, which may require an EXIT procedure. Recommended treatment is early surgical resection. Recurrences of the tumour and damage to future dentition have not been reported, suggesting that radical excision is not warranted.