Cryosurgery in the Management of Potentially Malignant Lesions: A Report of Two Cases.

Cryosurgery is a therapeutical approach that uses freezing to obtain a tissue inflammatory or destructive response. It has been successfully used for both cutaneous and oral conditions. The characteristics of oral mucosa like humidity and smoothness makes it an ideal site for this approach. Oral submucous fibrosis is a potentially malignant disorder of the oral mucosa, with areca nut chewing being the primary causative agent. Leukoplakia is a potentially malignant lesion associated with excessive consumption of alcohol and tobacco. Although there are no specific treatment modalities to prevent recurrence, abandoning habits can decrease the chance of recurrence, as well as the transfiguration into malignant tumors of these disorders. However, with the advent of cryosurgery, oral surgeons are provided with a new modality for treating oral potentially malignant disorders. This case report highlights the pioneering effect of nitrous oxide cryosurgery in treating two cases of oral submucous fibrosis with leukoplakia and oral leukoplakia respectively showing promising results during follow-up.

Efectos de los láseres de alta potencia sobre la mucosa bucal / Effects of high-power lasers on the oral mucosa

En el presente trabajo se analizan los efectos de láseres de Nd-YAG y CO2 sobre la mucosa bucal a través del tratamiento de algunos procesos mórbidos con indicaciones quirúrgicas como leucoplasias, líquenes atípicos, angiomas y cáncer, con un seguimiento postoperatorio de hasta dos años. Previamente se realizó un trabajo experimental durante el cual se irradiaron trozos de mucosa bucal humana para poner a punto la técnica y luego estudiar histológicamente los efectos de estos láseres en las estructuras tisulares bajo análisis. A través del tratamiento de esos procesos mórbidos se observaron los siguientes efectos considerados beneficiosos: ausencia de hemorragia en la totalidad de los casos tratados; escaso dolor y edema en el postoperatorio inmediato; escasa recidiva y mínima fibrosis cicatrizal en los controles a distancia