The most prevalent oral mucosal lesions are aphthous ulcerations commonly referred to as canker sores. The clinical characteristic of oral recurrent aphthous ulceration/stomatitis(ORAS) is well defined and can be partly described as an oval or rounded ulcer covered by a grey-white or yellowish fibrinous exudate and surrounded by an erythematous halo. There is intense or moderate pain and the ulcers heal in about 10 - 14 days for the more common type and more than 2 weeks for the severe type. Recurrence of the ulcers occurs at intervals within a year or over several years. Variations of ORAS described above have made studies on aetiology and treatment difficult to interpret due to differing descriptions of differing diseases with similar clinical signs and symptoms and possibly differing aetiologies. A classification that was considered useful as a working model for ORAS was formulated in 1978. While the classification of ORAS had been widely accepted since 1978, the cause for ORAS is still unknown and its aetiology in general remains unclear. However, its immunopathogenesis is now becoming more clearly defined.
The epithelial cystic linings and adjacent connective tissues of 61 cases of odontogenic cysts (radicular cysts[RC], dentigerous cysts[DC] and odontogenic keratocysts[OKC]) and unicystic ameloblastomas(UA) were described and compared histopathologically. The type of epithelium in relation to the presence of rete processes and the distribution of chronic inflammatory cells were analyzed statistically. Significant associations between the presence of rete processes in the non-keratinized epithelial linings and inflammation in the subjacent connective tissues of RC and DC were found in this study. There was also a statistically significant association between the presence of rete Processes and nonkeratinized epithelial linings in OKC. The results also showed that in inflamed OKC, the cystic lining epithelium exhibited hyperplasia indistinguishable from lining epithelium of RC and DC. This study further showed that ameloblastomatous-like epithelial cystic linings were present in inflammed odontogenic cysts. All except for one case of unicystic ameloblastomas in this study showed ameloblastomatous epithelial cystic linings. It is recommended that the lining epithelium of RC and DC be examined carefully in order to rule out OKC. Similarly, ameloblastomatous-like lining epithelium arising from chronic inflammation in RC and DC should be differentiated from true ameloblastomatous cystic lining. Such careful examinations are diagnostically important in view of the similarities of epithelial cystic linings of inflamed OKC with DC and RC aggressive behavior ofOKC and UA.
Proliferating Cell Nuclear Antigen (PCNA) is one of the several markers of cellular proliferation. Epithelial proliferations play a significant role in the behaviour of odontogenic lesions. The objective of this study was to describe and compare the distribution of PCNA expression within the epithelial linings of odontogenic cysts. A total of 49 cases of odontogenic cysts consisting of 18 radicular cysts, 16 dentigerous cysts, 15 odontogenic keratocysts (OKCs) was studied. All tissues were processed routinely prior to embedding in paraffin. PCNA immunohistochemical staining was performed on 4 !-tm thick deparaffinized sections mounted on sialinized slides using the peroxidase antiperoxidase method. The distributions of PCNA expression in the cysts linings were noted and comparison was made qualitatively and quantitatively. PCNA labelling index was used for the quantitative assessment. The results showed that PCNA staining was distributed in the basal and supra basal cells for radicular cysts, dentigerous cysts, and OKCs. PCNA labelling index was highest in OKC (22.33±4.07). The high PCNA labelling index in OKC is indicative of high proliferative activity thus supporting previous reports of OKC as the most aggressive type of odontogenic cysts.
This paper attempts to review epidemiological studies of oral cancer and precancer in Malaysia. The defmitions of prevalence, incidence, risk habits and oral cancer and precancers were discussed to better understand' the different types of studies conducted, which would be important in making comparisons between studies. Currently, epidemiological data on oral cancer in Malaysia are sketchy. The only incidence data for oral cancer in Malaysia was reported by Hirayama in 1966, 35 years ago. He estimated that 3.1 new cases per 100,000 population were diagnosed for the year 1963. A number of histopathological data of oral and maxillofacial biopsies were reported. Oral cancer accounted for one-fifth of all oral biopsies. A national study on oral mucosal lesions in Malaysia carried out in 1993/4 reported that there was a variation seen in the occurrence of oral premalignancy among the ethnic groups. The Indians and the indigenous people of Sabah and Sarawak were identified as high risk groups for oral cancer and precancer. It was also observed that both of the ethnic groups chewed betel quid. In conclusion, the epidemiological studies have provided useful data, which may be used in planning for future oral health programmes and research towards enhancing Malaysia's on-going effort in preventing the occurrence of these diseases.
Tumours that occur in the oral cavity may contain granular cells as a component of their pathology. A more common granular cell lesion occurring in the head and neck region is the granular cell tumour (GCT) that usually arises in the tongue or the buccal mucosa. Granular cell tumours are very rare in the parotid gland with only 11 cases previously reported in the English literature. We report a case of a benign tumour involving the parotid gland of a young female patient. The case was diagnostically challenging due to the large proportion of granular cells masking the underlying pathology. Histopathological features and immunohistochemical analysis favoured a diagnosis of a benign GCT. The present report provides an insight into the differential diagnosis and attempts to characterise the granular cells with the use of the wellestablished immunohistochemical markers and conventional histopathological techniques.
The paradental cyst is an odontogenic cyst occurring near to the cervical margin of the lateral aspect of a root as a consequence of an inflammatory process in a periodontal pocket. A distinct form of the paradental cyst occurs not infrequently on the buccal aspects of erupted mandibular third molar, where there is an associated history of pericoronitis. A search of the literature revealed that these cysts had all been reported in relation to partially, newly or fully erupted molars. This report presents one case in which the cyst was noticed to be associated with an unerupted third molar. The histological appearance of the cyst and the gross relationship to the cemento-enamel junction is similar to those typical of paradental cysts reported in the literature. However, the radiographic and clinical appearance of the tooth being unerupted do not tally with paradental cyst and yet exclude the diagnosis of dentigerous cyst. The diagnosis of dental follicular tissue was excluded based on the histopathological presentation. The authors suggested that this case may represent an early form of paradental cyst which in the past may have been dismissed as dental follicular residues and thus, the prevalence of paradental cyst may have been under reported in the literature.
Aneurysmal bone cyst is a rare non-epithelialized pseudocyst of the jaws. Jaffe and Lichtenstein in 1942 were the first to recognize aneurysmal bone cyst as a distinct clinical and pathological entity while Bernier and Bhaskar in 1958 were the first to describe the presence of this lesion in the jaws. A case of aneursymal bone cyst in the maxilla is presented and the literature reviewed.
The prevalence of tooth loss amongst the elderly is generally very high. Hence mastication and subsequently nutrition is greatly affected leading to the impairment of their general health. Therefore denture construction is an important aspect in the rehabilitation of the oral and general health in most elderlies. However, poorly constructed dentures and lack of maintenance coupled with various other health and healthrelated problems of the elderly, for instance poor general health especially with immunocompromised states, multiple medication intake, xerostomia, reduced mobility, economic status, mental state and ignorance may all lead to discomfort and denture associated lesions in these elderly patients. No regional studies or data on denture-related lesions in the general population have been reported. Previous epidemiological studies of adults in Malaysia (1,2) and other local studies have not investigated lesions of the oral tissues associated with geriatric denture wearers although studies in developed countries, where prevalence of denture usage is high, have noted that denture-related lesions to be the most common group of oral mucosal lesions in the elderly (3-7). As has been reported in most developing countries, the proportion of elderly in Malaysia is also increasing. It has also been noted that the mean number of teeth present decreases as age increases; in those between 15 to 19 years, all 28 teeth are present, 35 to 44 years-old have 23 teeth whereas those above 65 years retain only 12 teeth. Edentulousness increases from 0% to 7.3% to 56.6% in these age groups respectively (2). It is anticipated that with the increasing population of the elderly in Malaysia and the improving economy, the proportion of denture wearers in the population will increase. In view of the lack of investigations in Malaysia focusing exclusively on this group of lesions, it is therefore the aim of this pilot investigation to highlight the prevalence of denture- related lesions in a representative population of the elderly living in the community, both in the urban and rural areas. It may also form a basis against which future studies can be compared.
Background: MDM2 and p53 are involved in a negative feedback loop where p53 regulates MDM2 at the transcriptional level. MDM2, in turn, downregulates p53. This co-ordinated interaction between these proteins is set to play an important role in the regulation of cell cycle progression following DNA damage to cells. The over-expression of both p53 and MDM2 has been reported in various cancers. However there are only few studies discussing the co-expression of MDM2 with p53 in oral squamous cell carcinoma Aim: The purpose of this study was to determine the correlation of co-expression of p53, MDM2, and Ki-67 proteins with clinico-pathological factors in oral squamous cell carcinoma (OSCC) and to conduct a systematic review of the co-expression of p53/MDM2.
Method: This is a retrospective descriptive study and a systematic review. Formalin-fixed paraffinembedded tissues from 45 OSCC cases were stained by immunohistochemistry (IHC) for p53, MDM2, and Ki-67 proteins.
Results: Immuno-reactivity for p53, MDM2, and Ki-67 was seen in 75.6%, 97.8%, and 62.2% cases of OSCC respectively. The co-expression of p53 and MDM2 (p53/MDM2) was detected in 97.1%, however there was no significant correlation between p53 and MDM2 expression. Notably, p53/MDM2 coexpression was significantly associated with tumour differentiation (p-value = 0.045). The Ki-67LI was not significantly associated with neither MDM2 nor p53/MDM2 co-expression (p-value = 0.268, 0.916 respectively).
Conclusion: The expression of MDM2 was not signif icantly associated with p53 expression suggesting that MDM2 expression is mediated by p53-independent pathways or mutated p53 could not induce the expression of MDM2 in this set of OSCCs. The only clinico-pathological parameter that correlates significantly with co-expression of p53/MDM2 is tumour differentiation where it is suggestive that the co-expression of these 2 proteins is indicative of aggressive tumour behavior.
A review of incident oral and maxillofacial biopsies in Kelantan from January 1994 to December 1998 was carried out to evaluate the scope of pathological lesions managed by the two main oral and maxillofacial units in this state. A total of 357 biopsy reports from incident cases of pathological lesions were reviewed. The biopsies were mainly from intra-oral sites (n=326, 91.3%). Females had more frequent oro-facial lesions compared with males (male:female ratio is 0.8:1). The Bumiputera ethnic group had the most number of biopsies (n=321; 90%). The three most commonly observed histopathological groups were the connective tissue hyperplasia (n=90; 25.2%), epithelial dysplasia and neoplasia (n=68; 19%) and salivary gland cysts/mucocele (n=56; 15.7%). The top five most frequent diagnoses were mucocele (n=56; 15.7%), squamous cell carcinoma (n=45; 12.6%), epulides (n=31; 8.7%), pyogenic granuloma (n=25; 7.0%) and fibroepithelial polyp (n=19; 5.3%). Oro-facial malignancies made up almost one-fifth of all diagnoses and squamous cell carcinoma was the most common sub-type. Lymphomas in the oro-facial region (n=8; 11.4%) were more common than basal cell carcinoma (n=7; 10%) and salivary gland malignancies (n=6; 8.5%). Epithelial jaw cysts consisted of 8.7% (n=31) of all diagnoses, where inflammatory types were more common than the developmental types. Odontogenic tumours consisted of 5.6% (n=20) of all diagnoses and ameloblastoma was the predominant type.
The purpose of this study was to determine the
DNA yield and quality from different non-invasive
sampling methods and to identify the method which
gave the highest DNA yield. Method: Thirty-eight
volunteers had been recruited in this study where
blood, buccal cells and saliva were collected using
various collection techniques. Buccal cells were
collected by 1) cytobrush and 2) saline mouth rinsing
or “swish”. Meanwhile saliva was collected by passive
drooling method. Upon processing the white blood
cell (WBC), buccal cells and saliva samples, DNA
extraction was performed according to the
manufacturer’s protocol. Quantification and quality
(DNA ratio at A260/A280) of the extracted DNA were
determined using NanoDropND-1000®. T-test was
performed to compare means between DNA obtained
from various collection methods. Results: DNA yields
from buccal cells collected with cytobrush, “swish”,
saliva and WBC (mean ± SD) were (8.2 ± 5.9)ng/μl,
(28.2 ± 14.9)ng/μl, (5.9 ± 9.5)ng/μl and (105.3 ±
75.0)ng/μl respectively. Meanwhile the mean DNA
ratio at A260/A280 for cytobrush, “swish”, saliva and
WBC were 2.3, 2.0, 1.7 and 1.8 respectively. Post hoc
test with Bonferroni correction suggested that DNA
yield from “swish” technique exhibited the least mean
different as compared to the DNA extracted from WBC
(p
Verruco-papillary lesions (VPLs) of the oral cavity
described in the literature involve a spectrum of conditions
including squamous papilloma, verruca vulgaris, focal
epithelial hyperplasia, condyloma, proliferative verrucous
leukoplakia and verrucous carcinoma. The majority of the
VPLs are slow growing, benign in nature and have a viral
aetiology (1). Mucosal HPV types (HPV 6, 11, 13, 30,
32, 45, 52, 55, 59, 69, 72 and 73) have been implicated
as possible etiological causes for these benign lesions (2)
while virus associated benign mucosal outgrowths are not
too difficult to diagnose either clinically or by microscopy.
Apart from virus-associated lesions, VPLs harboring
malignant potential such as verrucous carcinoma,
proliferative verrucous leukoplakia and oral verrucous
hyperplasia (OVH) need to be further clarified for better
understanding of their predictable biologic behavior and
appropriate treatment. In particular, the condition referred
to as oral verrucous hyperplasia (OVH) poses a major
diagnostic challenge. OVH represents a histopathological
entity whose clinical features are not well recognised and
is usually clinically indistinguishable from a verrucous
carcinoma (3).
In 1980, Shear and Pindborg classified OVHs into
two clinical variants, a sharp variety comprising of long,
narrow, heavily keratinized verrucous processes which
appears white as a result of heavy keratinization and a
second variant referred to as the blunt variety consisting
of verrucous processes that are broader, flatter and not
heavily keratinized (3). A new pathological entity distinct
from what Shear and Pindborg earlier described has been
found in recent years among betel-quid chewers mainly
from Taiwan. In 2005, Chung et al., in a field survey of
1075 adults noted 9 verrucous lesions which they described
as exophytic outgrowths, which the authors hinted had
hitherto not been reported in the scientific literature (4).
Their Figure: 1 illustrated this newly described “verrucous
lesion”. Subsequently in 2009 Wang et al described a case
series of 60 cases from Taipei and classified these lesions as
plaque-type and mass-type lesions primarily based on their
histopathological features. It was also documented that the
mass-type verrucous hyperplasia may manifest as single
or multiple verrucous whitish pink lesions clinically while
the plaque-type lesions may appear as whitish verrucous
plaques. They also concluded that the terminology OVH
should be reserved to denote only the mass-type lesions
both clinically and histologically and suggested that the
plaque-type lesions should be clinically classified as oral
verruciform leukoplakia and histologically as verruciform
hyperplasia (5).
In an effort to bring uniformity in reporting
these lesions both clinically and histopathologically a
consensus meeting was held in Kuala lumpur, Malaysia
during December 15-18, 2013. A working committee
that included specialists working on oral malignant andpotentially malignant disorders attempted to formulate the
clinical and histopathological criteria of OVH based on
the discussion among the participants in the meeting. The
meeting was attended by 46 participants from 7 countries
and included specialists and trainees in the disciplines
of Oral Medicine and Oral and Maxillofacial Pathology.
Consensus guidelines arising from this meeting is as
follows.