title: Ectopic oral tonsillar tissue: a case series with bilateral and solitary presentations and a review of the literature.
abstract: An ectopic tonsil is defined as tonsillar tissue that develops in areas outside of the four major tonsil groups: the palatine, lingual, pharyngeal, and tubal tonsils. The occurrence of tonsillar tissue in the oral cavity in ectopic locations, its prevalence, and its developmental mechanisms that belong to its formation remain unclear. In this report, we describe a rare case of bilateral symmetric ectopic oral tonsillar tissue located at the ventral surface of the tongue along with two solitary cases arising from the floor of the mouth. The role of immune system and its aberrant response leading to ectopic deposits desires further studies. As an ectopic tonsil may simulate a benign soft tissue tumor, this case series highlights the importance of this entity in our clinical differential diagnosis of oral soft tissue masses.
authors: Department of Dentistry Oral and Maxillofacial Surgery, Ogaki Municipal Hospital, 4-86 Minaminokawa, Ogaki, Gifu 503-8502, Japan.
authors: Masashi
authors: M
authors: Kimura
authors: Department of Oral and Maxillofacial Surgery and Stomatology, Okazaki City Hospital, 3-1 Goshoai, Koryuji-cho, Okazaki, Aichi 444-8553, Japan.
authors: Toru
authors: T
authors: Nagao
authors: Department of Oral and Maxillofacial Surgery and Stomatology, Okazaki City Hospital, 3-1 Goshoai, Koryuji-cho, Okazaki, Aichi 444-8553, Japan.
authors: Terumi
authors: T
authors: Saito
authors: Department of Oral Medicine, King's College London Dental Institute, WHO Collaborating Centre for Oral cancer/Precancer, Bessemer Road, London SE5 9RS, UK.
authors: Saman
authors: S
authors: Warnakulasuriya
authors: Department of Dentistry Oral and Maxillofacial Surgery, Ogaki Municipal Hospital, 4-86 Minaminokawa, Ogaki, Gifu 503-8502, Japan.
authors: Hiroyuki
authors: H
authors: Ohto
authors: Department of Oral and Maxillofacial Surgery and Stomatology, Okazaki City Hospital, 3-1 Goshoai, Koryuji-cho, Okazaki, Aichi 444-8553, Japan.
authors: Akihito
authors: A
authors: Takahashi
authors: Department of Oral and Maxillofacial Surgery, Yokkaichi Municipal Hospital, Yokkaichi, Mie 510-8567, Japan.
authors: Kanji
authors: K
authors: Komaki
authors: Department of Dentistry Oral and Maxillofacial Surgery, Ogaki Municipal Hospital, 4-86 Minaminokawa, Ogaki, Gifu 503-8502, Japan.
authors: Yoshiyuki
authors: Y
authors: Naganawa