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Prevalence of thyroid gland tissue in midline neck dermoid cysts in children and a proposed new ‘thyroglossal entrainment’ hypothesis for their formation

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  05 October 2023

Amy Barbour ,
Dawn Penman  and
Haytham Kubba Open the ORCID record for Haytham Kubba [Opens in a new window]
Amy Barbour
Affiliation:
Department of Paediatric Otolaryngology, Royal Hospital for Children, Glasgow, Scotland, UK
Dawn Penman
Affiliation:
Department of Pathology, Royal Hospital for Children, Glasgow, Scotland, UK
Haytham Kubba*
Affiliation:
Department of Paediatric Otolaryngology, Royal Hospital for Children, Glasgow, Scotland, UK
*
Corresponding author: Haytham Kubba; Email: [email protected]
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Abstract

Background

Thyroglossal duct cysts and dermoid cysts both commonly present as midline neck lumps in children. They are treated as separate entities with different embryological origins. There are isolated reports of thyroid gland tissue in a dermoid cyst, concurrent thyroglossal and dermoid cysts, and cysts with mixed histology. It is not known if these are rare or common.

Methods

All children undergoing excision of a congenital midline neck cyst between January 2017 and December 2022 were identified. Histopathology slides were reviewed in detail.

Results

In 53 children, there were 26 thyroglossal duct cysts, 24 dermoids, 1 lymph node and 2 with no diagnostic material identified. Five dermoids (28 per cent) had associated thyroid gland tissue, and 1 (4 per cent) had hybrid histology with keratinising and respiratory epithelium. Infection occurred in 17 per cent of dermoids prior to excision and 8 per cent of dermoids recurred after excision.

Conclusion

Hybrid histology, infection and recurrence are all common in midline neck dermoids. A new theory for their embryological origin is proposed, with the suggestion that some may need more extensive surgery.

Keywords

Thyroglossal duct cystdermoid cystchildren
Type
Main Article
Information
The Journal of Laryngology & Otology , Volume 138 , Issue 4 , April 2024 , pp. 448 - 450
Copyright
Copyright © The Author(s), 2023. Published by Cambridge University Press on behalf of J.L.O. (1984) LIMITED

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Footnotes

Haytham Kubba takes responsibility for the integrity of the content of the paper

References

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