Palatal Mucosal Inflammation Caused by an Unusual Foreign Body in an Infant

Ikeda, Shunya; Iwamoto, Yuko; Ogawa, Masashi; Akitomo, Tatsuya; Nomura, Ryota

doi:10.3390/diagnostics16030493

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Palatal Mucosal Inflammation Caused by an Unusual Foreign Body in an Infant

by

Shunya Ikeda

^†,

Yuko Iwamoto

^†

,

Masashi Ogawa

,

Tatsuya Akitomo

^* and

Ryota Nomura

Department of Pediatric Dentistry, Graduate School of Biomedical and Health Sciences, Hiroshima University, Hiroshima 734-8553, Japan

^*

Author to whom correspondence should be addressed.

^†

These authors contributed equally to this work.

Diagnostics 2026, 16(3), 493; https://doi.org/10.3390/diagnostics16030493

Submission received: 16 January 2026 / Revised: 2 February 2026 / Accepted: 4 February 2026 / Published: 5 February 2026

(This article belongs to the Section Clinical Diagnosis and Prognosis)

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Abstract

Infants may place various objects in their mouths during the developmental process, which can sometimes involve life-threatening risks, such as choking. We describe the case of a 1-year 3-month-old female with a foreign body in the oral cavity. She was referred to our hospital with chief complaints of suspected supernumerary teeth and blisters, and the initial examination revealed blister-like swelling and a white swelling on the hard palate. Intraoral photographs were obtained and examined from multiple angles, revealing findings that resembled a character. Careful re-examination showed that a three-dimensional sticker was attached to the hard palate, which could be removed in one piece. It is important for dental professionals to conduct intraoral examinations of pediatric patients with the understanding that unexpected findings may be present, and think about a foreign body in palatal lesions. In addition, this report highlights a new risk for caregivers supervising infants, as seemingly harmless stickers can remain in the mouth for extended periods.

Keywords: foreign body; infant; three-dimensional sticker

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MDPI and ACS Style

Ikeda, S.; Iwamoto, Y.; Ogawa, M.; Akitomo, T.; Nomura, R. Palatal Mucosal Inflammation Caused by an Unusual Foreign Body in an Infant. Diagnostics 2026, 16, 493. https://doi.org/10.3390/diagnostics16030493

AMA Style

Ikeda S, Iwamoto Y, Ogawa M, Akitomo T, Nomura R. Palatal Mucosal Inflammation Caused by an Unusual Foreign Body in an Infant. Diagnostics. 2026; 16(3):493. https://doi.org/10.3390/diagnostics16030493

Chicago/Turabian Style

Ikeda, Shunya, Yuko Iwamoto, Masashi Ogawa, Tatsuya Akitomo, and Ryota Nomura. 2026. "Palatal Mucosal Inflammation Caused by an Unusual Foreign Body in an Infant" Diagnostics 16, no. 3: 493. https://doi.org/10.3390/diagnostics16030493

APA Style

Ikeda, S., Iwamoto, Y., Ogawa, M., Akitomo, T., & Nomura, R. (2026). Palatal Mucosal Inflammation Caused by an Unusual Foreign Body in an Infant. Diagnostics, 16(3), 493. https://doi.org/10.3390/diagnostics16030493

Note that from the first issue of 2016, this journal uses article numbers instead of page numbers. See further details here.

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Palatal Mucosal Inflammation Caused by an Unusual Foreign Body in an Infant

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