Login to your account
Don’t have an account?
Create a Free Account
Clinicopathologic Conference
Painful palatal lesion in a 90-year-old female
A 90-year-old female presented to a local oral and maxillofacial surgeon for evaluation of a painful lesion involving her left palatal mucosa. The patient first reported discomfort involving the left side of her mouth approximately 2 days before her presentation. Her medical history was significant for dementia, so it was unclear if this acute presentation was accurate or if the lesion had been present for longer than the reported time. The patient's home health aide did state that she noticed an appreciable decrease in the patient's ability to eat and drink over the past 24 hours before her appointment.Destructive maxillary radiolucency in a 20-year-old female
A 20-year-old female was referred to the Department of Oral and Maxillofacial Surgery, Columbia University, for evaluation of a recurrent radiolucent lesion in the anterior maxilla. The patient reported that 8 months ago, she had presented to an outside oral surgeon with mobile, but vital, right lateral (#7) and central (#8) maxillary incisors and associated discomfort. During the initial presentation, the patient did not recall any trauma to the region, and her dentition was otherwise in excellent condition without caries or periodontal disease.84-year-old woman with a right cheek mass
An 84-year-old female patient was referred to a local oral and maxillofacial surgeon for evaluation of an enlarging right cheek mass of 3 months’ duration. The lesion was first noted by the treating dentist after restorative procedures performed in the right upper quadrant. Proximity of the lesion to the site of prior maxillary buccal infiltrations led to an initial clinical impression of a hematoma secondary to local anesthetic injection. The patient's medical history was noncontributory. Extraoral examination revealed a firm, nontender, subcutaneous lesion of the right cheek measuring 4.2 (lateral-medial) × 3.5 (superior-inferior) × 2.0 (anterior-posterior) centimeters (cm) (Fig.Gingival ulceration in a 63-year-old lung transplant recipient
A 63-year-old Caucasian female was referred for evaluation of a painful left mandibular gingival ulceration of 3 weeks' duration. The lesion was reported to have initially presented on the buccal surface of the left first molar but over the past week had grown in size and now also involved the lingual gingiva. According to the patient, it was also becoming more painful. The patient had been administered clindamycin, metronidazole, and nystatin; however, the lesion showed no response to these agents.A 23-year-old female with a painless left mandibular swelling
A 23 year-old female was referred by her general dentist to a local oral surgeon for evaluation of a left mandibular lesion. The patient reported a “swelling” of her lower jaw of a few weeks' duration but denied any pain or discomfort. She had no history of trauma to the site or any significant past medical or surgical history. At presentation to the oral surgeon, the patient did not appear to be in acute distress. Clinical examination revealed a red-pink, firm submucosal swelling of the left mandibular gingiva on the lingual aspect of a vital left mandibular first molar (tooth #19), measuring 5 mm in greatest dimension (Figure 1).
