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Case Reports
. 2018 Dec;17(4):441-443.
doi: 10.1007/s12663-017-1053-4. Epub 2017 Nov 9.

Solitary Fibrous Tumor of the Tongue: An Uncommon Cause of Obstructive Sleep Apnea

Giovanni Sorrenti  1 , Irene Pelligra  1 , Riccardo Albertini  1 , Ottavio Piccin  1
Affiliations
Case Reports

Solitary Fibrous Tumor of the Tongue: An Uncommon Cause of Obstructive Sleep Apnea

Giovanni Sorrenti et al. J Maxillofac Oral Surg. 2018 Dec.

Abstract

Introduction: Solitary fibrous tumor is an uncommon mesenchymal neoplasm that may be found in any location. To date, only a few cases of solitary fibrous tumor involving the tongue have been reported.

Case summary: We present the case of a 31-year-old man with a history of progressively worsening snoring and daytime sleepiness. Polysomnography revealed severe obstructive sleep apnea. An attempt to treat sleep apnea by continuous positive airway pressure and oral appliance led to a poor clinical response. CT and MRI scans findings revealed a large mass in the tongue base partially obstructing the airway. After the excision of the mass all symptoms, included daytime somnolence, disappeared and a polysomnographic examination showed the normalization of the somnographic parameters.

Discussion: Although OSA is rarely caused by tumors, each patient with sleep disorders breathing should be examined carefully for the potential presence of an upper aero-digestive tract neoplasm that may contribute to obstruction.

Keywords: Obstructive sleep apnea; Polysomnography; Solitary fibrous tumor.

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Conflict of interest statement

The authors declare that they have no conflict of interest.All procedures performed in studies involving human participants were in accordance with the ethical standards of the institutional and/or national research committee and with the 1964 Declaration of Helsinki and its later amendments or comparable ethical standards.Informed consent was obtained from all individual participants included in the study.

Figures

Fig. 1
Fig. 1
Sagittal MRA revealed early and homogeneous enhancement without neovascularity
Fig. 2
Fig. 2
Surgical approach: tumor removal by a suprahyoid transcervical approach
Fig. 3
Fig. 3
Surgical specimen
See this image and copyright information in PMC

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