Soft Pillows, Hard Consequences: A Case Report Unveiling a Down Feather Neck Granuloma in a Pediatric Patient

Ferial Alloush; Kei Shing Oh; Hisham F Bahmad; Robert Poppiti; Felipe Pedroso; Carole Brathwaite

doi:10.1111/pde.15893

Soft Pillows, Hard Consequences: A Case Report Unveiling a Down Feather Neck Granuloma in a Pediatric Patient

Pediatr Dermatol. 2025 Apr 13. doi: 10.1111/pde.15893. Online ahead of print.

Authors

Ferial Alloush¹, Kei Shing Oh¹, Hisham F Bahmad¹, Robert Poppiti^{1

2}, Felipe Pedroso³, Carole Brathwaite⁴

Affiliations

¹ Arkadi M. Rywlin Department of Pathology and Laboratory Medicine, Mount Sinai Medical Center, Miami Beach, Florida, USA.
² Department of Pathology, Herbert Wertheim College of Medicine, Florida International University, Miami, Florida, USA.
³ Department of Pediatric Surgery, Nicklaus Children's Hospital, Miami Children's Health System, Florida, USA.
⁴ Department of Pathology, Nicklaus Children's Hospital, Miami Children's Health System, Florida, USA.

PMID: 40223187
DOI: 10.1111/pde.15893

Abstract

Down pillows, fitted with soft feathers, are commonly used among parents for their children due to their comfort, breathability, and warmth. In this case report, we present a 17-month-old boy who presented with a chief complaint of fever and progressive left neck swelling warranting a surgical excision after a failed course of antibiotic therapy. Histopathologic examination of the lesion demonstrated down feathers with associated granuloma with foreign-body type giant cell reaction, attributed to the use of the down pillow.

Keywords: down; feather; granuloma and neck; pillow.

Publication types

Case Reports