A full-term newborn with an unremarkable history was admitted from the maternity ward due to refusal to feed secondary to a gingival tumor.

The infant was vigorous, with a good latch and effective suckling at the mother’s breast immediately after birth. At 7 h of life, the care team consulted due to refusal to feed and hypoglycemia. The physical examination revealed a soft mass attached to the lower gum that contained two mobile congenital teeth (Fig. 1).

Figure 1.

Soft, lobulated oral mass attached to the lower gum, inside which two loose neonatal teeth could be discerned.

Given the feeding difficulties and the risk of aspiration, the lesion was excised under local anesthesia, without any complications. The histological examination revealed a fragment of a follicular sac associated with two neonatal teeth, both of which exhibited normal histological characteristics, with no signs of atypia or malignancy.

The outcome was favorable, and the patient was able to feed orally following the extraction.

The presence of teeth at birth usually results from the premature eruption of normal primary dentition structures (frequently the lower central incisors),1 and, while the management is usually conservative, extraction may be indicated if it causes feeding difficulties or there is risk of aspiration.2