Myxomatous Mysteries: Decoding the Oral Focal Mucinosis.

Oral focal mucinosis (OFM) is a unique benign lesion of the oral cavity with uncertain etiology which is analogous to cutaneous focal mucinosis. It mainly affects women in their fourth and fifth decades of life. The diagnosis of this condition is based on histopathological examination, as it lacks characteristic clinical and radiographic features. Its pathophysiology is associated with fibroblasts producing excessive amounts of hyaluronic acid, which causes localized myxomatous changes. Here, we describe the occurrence of this rare entity in a 54-year-old female patient involving attached gingiva of the left posterior mandibular region along with emphasis on its histopathological and histochemical findings to differentiate it from clinically and microscopically look-alike lesions.

Primary amelanotic malignant melanoma of parotid and submandibular salivary gland: A rare case report.

Primary amelanotic malignant melanomas (AMMs) of the parotid and submandibular salivary glands are extremely rare with only a few reported cases due to its low incidence and misdiagnosis. Malignant melanoma (MM) has a high predilection for the head-and-neck region and majority of the cases in the parotid gland reported as association with metastasis in and around the gland from a cutaneous primary tumor. Immunohistochemistry is solely needed for confirmation of diagnosis and MMs give positive reactivity for melan-A, HMB-45, and S-100. Prognosis for AMM in the mucosal or salivary gland regions is much poorer than cutaneous regions because of anatomic considerations and its delayed diagnosis. The treatment of choice is radical surgery and parotidectomy along with radiotherapy and chemotherapy.

Giant cell-rich osteosarcoma - A rare case.

Giant cell-rich osteosarcoma (GCRO) is an exceedingly rare histological variant of conventional primary osteosarcoma. It constitutes about 1%-3% of all osteosarcomas, and is extremely uncommon in the maxillofacial region. The unusual histopathological appearance and the rarity of the lesion poses a great diagnostic challenge. This article aims to present a rare case of GCRO involving the mandible in a 52-year-old male patient.

Solitary Encapsulated Neurofibroma Not Associated with Neurofibromatosis-1 Affecting Tongue in a 73-Year-Old Female.

Neurofibromas are benign tumors of nerve cell origin arising due to proliferation of Schwann cells and fibroblasts. They are usually asymptomatic and hence remain undiagnosed. They are commonly found on the skin and intraorally tongue is the most common site for their occurrence. Here, we present a unique case of solitary encapsulated neurofibroma in the oral cavity without any clinical manifestations or family history of Neurofibromatosis type 1 in a 73-year-old female patient who presented with a painless swelling on the tongue. The histopathologic findings closely mimicked benign fibrous histiocytoma. In our case, definitive diagnosis of neurofibroma was made based on clinical findings, family history, and histopathological and immunohistochemical evaluation. Through this case report we want to emphasize the role of biopsy and immunohistochemistry in arriving at a confirmatory diagnosis. The patient was treated by surgical excision and showed no signs of recurrence over a follow-up period of 12 months.

Cervicofacial Actinomycosis Mimicking Osseous Neoplasm: A Rare Case.

Actinomycosis is a rare chronic infectious disease caused primarily by Actinomyces israelli. Although they are normal inhabitants of the oral cavity, infection occurs when there is a breach in the mucosa allowing them access to the subcutaneous tissues. Poor oral hygiene, dental caries, recent dental extraction, oromaxillofacial trauma have been implicated as risk factors for actinomycosis. Cervicofacial actinomycosis is the most common form of this rare disease. Here, we are presenting a rare case of actinomycosis involving the parotid gland and coronoid process of mandible in a young child where diagnosis was made based on histopathological findings since the classical clinical manifestations of actinomycosis, were absent in the case.

Polymorphism in CYP1A1 and CYP2E1 genes and susceptibility to leukoplakia in Indian tobacco users.

Inter-individual genetic differences may contribute to differences in susceptibility to human diseases triggered by environmental exposures. In this study, we investigated polymorphisms at two sites in the CYP1A1 and three sites in the CYP2E1 genes in 99 leukoplakia patients and 227 controls from one Indian population. The frequencies of genotypes at these polymorphic sites (MspI and Ileu/Val) in the CYP1A1 and (PstI, RsaI and DraI) in the CYP2E1 genes, were similar in patient and control groups. But the combined rare and heterozygous genotypes (CC+CD) at the DraI site in the CYP2E1 gene were over-represented among patients compared with controls (age-adjusted odds ratio (OR)=2.02, 95% confidence interval (CI)=1.21-3.35). Light tobacco smokers (i.e. <21 pack-year) and light tobacco chewers (i.e. <104 chewing-year) with a "rare" C allele at the DraI site had high risk of leukoplakia (OR=2.88, 95% CI=1.16-7.22; OR=2.94, 95% CI=1.15-7.65, respectively). The "mixed tobacco" users with "rare" C allele are more susceptible to the disease than "exclusive" tobacco smokers and chewers. The results indicate that the "rare" C allele at the DraI polymorphic site in CYP2E1 gene may enhance susceptibility to leukoplakia among tobacco users in this population. But the low sample size limited the power to precisely estimate the tobacco-genotype interactions.