Odontogenic cyst with diverse histopathological features: report of an unusual case.

OBJECTIVE: It is a well established fact that all inflammatory and developmental cysts of odontogenic origin have squamous epithelial linings. They may show various forms of metaplasia from a stratified squamous to more highly differentiated ciliated columnar or mucous cells. Dentigerous cyst represents is the most common developmental odontogenic cyst usually associated with an impacted tooth after complete formation of the crown. A dentigerous cyst encloses is seen attached to the neck of the tooth at the cementoenamel junction associated with an unerupted/ impacted tooth and grows by expansion of the dental follicles. We report a similar case of dentigerous cyst associated with an impacted tooth, histologically demonstrates the characteristics of a glandular odontogenic cyst with pseudo- stratified ciliated columnar epithelium lining with goblet cells and mucous cells.

Adenomatoid odontogenic tumour in a 20-year-old woman.

Adenomatoid odontogenic tumour is a relatively rare and distinct odontogenic tumour that is exclusively odontogenic epithelium in origin. It comprises 3% of all odontogenic tumours. This report describes the surgical therapy, clinical course and morphological characteristics of an adenomatoid odontogenic tumour that developed in the left maxilla of a 20-year-old patient.

Peripheral osteoma of the body of mandible.

Osteoma is a benign osteogenic neoplasm microscopically consisting of proliferation of cancellous or compact bone. Peripheral osteomas (PO) arise from the periosteum and are quite uncommon in the jaw bones. POs of mandible are considered as rare entity and very few cases have been reported in the literature. The pathogenesis of PO is unclear. Some investigators consider it a true neoplasm, while others believe it as a developmental anomaly, a reactive mechanism due to trauma or infection. The purpose of this article is to present the clinical, radiographic, surgical and histological features of a solitary peripheral osteoma of the mandible in a 43-year-old woman and to review the literature for PO located in the mandible.

Trabecular variant of juvenile aggressive ossifying fibroma of anterior mandible.

Juvenile ossifying fibroma (JOF) is an expansile intra-osseous lesion of the jaw that emulate odontogenic lesions frequently seen in patients under 15 years of age. They are histologically characterized by the presence of fibrous stromal cells along with mineralized tissues. Clinically, these are characterized by early age of onset, histological patterns, high rate of recurrence and the aggressive local behavior. The differential diagnosis of JOF with other fibro-osseous lesions of the jaw should be made along with an essential microscopic examination and be largely based on the character of the calcified products of the tumor. The purpose of this article is to present a rare clinical case of the trabecular type of JOF and to describe its clinical, radiological and histological characteristics. The clinician should be aware of this type of lesion in order to be able to distinguish this it from other fibrous lesions if encountered in routine practice and for appropriate treatment to be carried out.

Oral myiasis in children.

Oral myiasis is a rare condition in humans and is associated with poor oral hygiene, severe halitosis, mouth breathing during sleep, mental handicap, cerebral palsy, epilepsy, anterior open bite, incompetent lips, and other conditions. In this report, a 14 year-old boy who had an orofacial trauma in the maxillary dentoalveolar region,which was neglected, has been described. There was a deep lacerated wound on the upper vestibule which was infected and maggots were found on the same wound. The clinical features, management, treatment are discussed and relevant literature is reviewed.

Mucormycosis of the hard palate masquerading as carcinoma.

A growing number of medically compromised patients are encountered by dentists in their practices. Opportunistic fungal infections such as mucormycosis usually occur in immunocompromised patients but can infect healthy individuals as well. Mucormycosis is an acute opportunistic, uncommon, frequently fatal fungal infection, caused by a saprophytic fungus that belongs to the class of phycomycetes. Among the clinical differential diagnosis we can consider squamous cell carcinoma. Such cases present as chronic ulcers with raised margins causing exposure of underlying bone. There is a close histopathological resemblance between mucormycosis and aspergillosis. Microscopically, aspergillosis has septate branching hyphae, which can be distinguished from mucormycotic hyphae by a smaller width and prominent acute angulations of branching hyphae. A definitive diagnosis of mucormycosis can be made by tissue biopsy that identifies the characteristic hyphae, by positive culture or both. The culture of diseased tissue may be negative and histopathologic examination is essential for early diagnosis. Mucormycosis was long regarded as a fatal infection with poor prognosis. However with early medical and surgical management survival rates are now thought to exceed 80%. In the present case, the fungus was identified by hematoxylin and eosin stain and confirmed by Grocott's silver methenamine special staining technique. Removal of the necrotic bone, which acted as a nidus of infection, was done. Post-operatively patient was advised an obturator to prevent oronasal regurgitation. Since mucormycosis occurs infrequently, it may pose a diagnostic and therapeutic dilemma for those who are not familiar with its clinical presentation.