Recurrent intraoral HSV-1 infection : a retrospective study of 58 immunocompetent patients from Eastern Europe

Objectives. To revise the clinical features of the recurrent intraoral herpetic infection (RIOH) with respect to precipitating factors, demographic, clinical features and outcome. Study design. Fifty-eight, unrelated Caucasian, immunocompetent patients with positive laboratory test for intraoral Herpes simplex virus infection were studied. Results. The mean age in the women?s group (n=42) was 41.23 years (± 21.73) and in the men?s group was 32.25 years (± 15.68). Possible trigger factors were identified in 9 cases (15.5%). General symptoms were noted in 20 cases (34.48%). Most of patients in this study presented multiple lesions. 14 patients had vermillion lesions associated with intraoral lesions. In most of the cases both fixed and mobile mucosa was concomitantly involved. Treatment was prescribed in order to control the symptoms and to shorten the evolution with minimal side effects. Conclusions. Intraoral secondary herpetic infection could be polymorphous and sometimes associated with general symptoms. The recognition of its atypical features may prevent unnecessary and costly investigations and treatments for unrelated though clinically similar-appearing disorders

Describing the gingival involvement in a sample of 182 Italian predominantly oral mucous membrane pemphigoid patients : a retrospective series

The oral cavity has been frequently described as the only site of involvement or as the first manifestation of mucous membrane pemphigoid (MMP), being the gingival tissues often involved, but usually this has been effusively detailed in limited case series. This is a retrospective evaluation of the gingival involvement in 182 Italian patients with oral MMP. The diagnosis of MMP was established by both clinical morphology and direct immunofluorescence finding. Patient information (age, gender, risk factors and medical status) and parameters of manifestation (lesions? distribution, site and type) were detailed. The mean age was 62 years for women (n=137) and 67 years for men (n=45). Patients had several sites of oral involvement; the gingiva was the most common one, affecting 151 patients (82.96%; 119 f - 32 m). Female subjects had more possibilities to develop gingival lesions than male patients (P = 0.005). Sixty-five patients (35.7%; 58 f - 7 m) had pure gingival involvement. Patients with lower gingival involvement statistically had more complaints (P = 0.006). This report is one of the largest about predominantly oral MMP cases, detailing the very frequent gingival involvement; this could be crucial not only for oral medicine specialists but also for primary dental healthcare personnel and for periodontists

Clinical features and histological description of tongue lesions in a lar ge Northern Italian population

Background: Only few studies on tongue lesions considered sizable populations, and contemporary literature does not provide a valid report regarding the epidemiology of tongue lesions within the Italian population. In this report, the histopathological and clinical appearance of 1.106 tongue lesions from northern Italians are described and discussed. Material and Methods: The case records of patients referred for the diagnosis and management of tongue lesions, from October 1993 to October 2013, were reviewed. Histological data were also obtained and blindly reexamined. Results: For instance, a biopsy performed on a lingual ulcer has a strong predicting association with a carcinoma, whereas a biopsy on a white lesion predicts for a leukoplakia or oral lichen planus. Moreover, a biopsy of erosion is representative of bullous diseases, whereas a biopsy on a verrucous-papillary lesion is significant for fibroma. Furthermore, carcinomas occur in the majority of cases on the lingual edge or pelvis, oral lichen planus is mainly seen on the edge, and fibromas mostly on the lingual tip. Conclusions: The high frequency of tongue involvement of such different diseases emphasizes the importance of histological characterization and that some diseases occur more frequently than others, with a peculiar clinical aspect and a more common area. In fact our survey can help the clinician in advancing diagnostic hypothesis, on the basis of the elementary lesion and its site of involvemen

Clinical and histological features of gingival lesions : a 17-year retrospective analysis in a northern Italian population

Objectives: Only few studies on gingival lesions considered large enough populations and contemporary literature does not provide a valid report regarding the epidemiology of gingival lesions within the Italian population. The histopathological and clinical appearance of 538 gingival lesions from northern Italians are described and discussed here. Study Design: The case records of patients referred for the diagnosis and management of gingival lesions, from October 1993 to October 2009, were reviewed. Data regarding the histological type of lesion were also obtained from the biopsy register for each case, and blindly re-examined. Results: We reported a greater frequency of benign lesions (reactive and/or inflammatory) in non-plaque/non- calculus induced gingival disorders. We confirmed an unambiguous prevalence of oral squamous cell carcinoma above all other malignant neoplasia, and a prevalence of neoplastic malignant lesions in the maxilla, with a slight increase in females and a drift of the incidence peak from the seventh to the eighth decade. There was a prevalence of precancerous gingival lesions in the maxilla, with a higher incidence in females and with a drift from the sixth to the seventh decade. We also reported a prevalence of oral lichen planus and lichenoid lesions as major manifestations of desquamative gingivitis. Conclusions: The high frequency of gingival involvement of such different diseases emphasizes the importance of histological characterization and differential diagnosis for periodontists, but more prospective studies are needed to better describe the true incidence of the non-plaque related gingival diseases