Lingual thyroid: a case report

A case report was carried out focusing on the scintigraphic findings of lingual ectopic thyroid in a pediatric female patient, referred from primary care to tertiary care due to a mass at the base of the tongue. Scintigraphy with 99mTc-pertechnetate confirmed the diagnosis of lingual ectopic thyroid, with no signs of functional impairment. Lingual ectopic thyroid is the most common form of thyroid ectopia, resulting from a failure in the embryonic migration of the gland from the base of the tongue to the pretracheal region. Most cases are asymptomatic, and the diagnosis is often incidental. Scintigraphy with 99mTc-pertechnetate is the examination of choice to identify functional ectopic thyroid tissue, offering good image quality and low radiation dose, with radiological methods being especially useful in surgical planning.