Download PDF
CC BY 4.0 · Eur J Dent 2022; 16(02): 315-319
DOI: 10.1055/s-0041-1735790
Original Article

Pigmented Oral Lesions: A Multicenter Study

Kittipong Dhanuthai
1   Department of Oral Pathology, Faculty of Dentistry, Chulalongkorn University, Bangkok, Thailand
,
Natchaya Theungtin
2   Faculty of Dentistry, Chulalongkorn University, Bangkok, Thailand
,
Natnicha Theungtin
2   Faculty of Dentistry, Chulalongkorn University, Bangkok, Thailand
,
Pantira Thep-akrapong
2   Faculty of Dentistry, Chulalongkorn University, Bangkok, Thailand
,
Sompid Kintarak
3   Department of Oral Diagnostic Sciences, Faculty of Dentistry, Prince of Songkla University, Songkhla, Thailand
,
Poramaporn Klanrit
4   Department of Oral Biomedical Sciences, Faculty of Dentistry, Khon Kaen University, Khon Kaen, Thailand
,
Nutchapon Chamusri
5   Department of Oral Biology and Oral Diagnostic Sciences, Chiang Mai University, Chiang Mai, Thailand
,
Kraisorn Sappayatosok 
6   Department of Oral Diagnostic Sciences, College of Dental Medicine, Rangsit University, Pathumtani, Thailand
› Author Affiliations
› Further Information
   Permissions and Reprints

Abstract

Objectives The aim of this study was to determine the prevalence and clinical features of pigmented oral lesions from Thailand.

Materials and Methods Biopsy records of the Department of Oral Pathology, Chulalongkorn University, Department of Oral Diagnosis, KhonKaen University, Department of Oral Biology and Oral Diagnostic Sciences, Chiangmai University, Department of Stomatology, Prince of Songkla University, and Rangsit University were reviewed for oral pigmented lesions diagnosed during 1999 to 2019. Demographic data were culled from the biopsy records. Ages of the patients were subdivided into 10-year intervals. Locations of the lesions were classified as gingiva, labial/buccal mucosa, palate, floor of the mouth, tongue, as well as the combination of sites. Data were analyzed by descriptive statistics using SPSS version 20.0.

Results Of the 47,175 accessioned cases, 241 cases (0.51%) were diagnosed in the category of pigmented oral lesions. The age of the patients ranged from 1 month to 88 years with the mean ± standard deviation = 38.74 ± 20.96 years. Regarding gender, 172 patients (71.37%) with pigmented lesions were females, while 69 patients (28.63%) were males. The female-to-male ratio was 2.49:1. The majority of the pigmented lesions were encountered at the gingiva (29.88%) followed by labial/buccal mucosa (26.97%), palate (14.94%), lip (10.79%), alveolar mucosa (9.54%), and others (7.88%), respectively. The three most common pigmented oral lesions in the present study were nevus (39.83%), followed by melanotic macule (28.63%) and amalgam tattoo (17.43%), respectively.

Conclusions The most common pigmented oral lesion in the present study is nevus. Demographic data of the patients in the present study are in accordance with previous studies with minor differences. Even though pigmented lesions of the oral cavity constitute a small portion of the oral pathology biopsies, accurate diagnosis is important since there is an overlap in clinical appearance of benign pigmented lesions and melanoma.

Keywords

clinical features - pigmented lesions - prevalence - Thailand

Ethical Approval

The study was performed after approval was received from the Institutional Review Board of the Faculty of Dentistry, Chulalongkorn University.




Publication History

Article published online:
09 November 2021

© 2021. The Author(s). This is an open access article published by Thieme under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License, permitting unrestricted use, distribution, and reproduction so long as the original work is properly cited. (https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/)

Thieme Medical and Scientific Publishers Pvt. Ltd.
A-12, 2nd Floor, Sector 2, Noida-201301 UP, India

 

  • References

  • 1 Hassona Y, Sawair F, Al-Karadsheh O, Scully C. Prevalence and clinical features of pigmented oral lesions. Int J Dermatol 2016; 55 (09) 1005-1013
    CrossrefPubMedGoogle Scholar
  • 2 Meleti M, Vescovi P, Mooi WJ, van der Waal I. Pigmented lesions of the oral mucosa and perioral tissues: a flow-chart for the diagnosis and some recommendations for the management. Oral Surg Oral Med Oral Pathol Oral Radiol Endod 2008; 105 (05) 606-616
    CrossrefPubMedGoogle Scholar
  • 3 Tavares TS, Meirelles DP, de Aguiar MCF, Caldeira PC. Pigmented lesions of the oral mucosa: a cross-sectional study of 458 histopathological specimens. Oral Dis 2018; 24 (08) 1484-1491
    CrossrefPubMedGoogle Scholar
  • 4 Buchner A, Merrell PW, Carpenter WM. Relative frequency of solitary melanocytic lesions of the oral mucosa. J Oral Pathol Med 2004; 33 (09) 550-557
    CrossrefPubMedGoogle Scholar
  • 5 Amir E, Gorsky M, Buchner A, Sarnat H, Gat H. Physiologic pigmentation of the oral mucosa in Israeli children. Oral Surg Oral Med Oral Pathol 1991; 71 (03) 396-398
    CrossrefPubMedGoogle Scholar
  • 6 Francisco AL, Furlan MV, Peresi PM. et al. Head and neck mucosal melanoma: clinicopathological analysis of 51 cases treated in a single cancer centre and review of the literature. Int J Oral Maxillofac Surg 2016; 45 (02) 135-140
    CrossrefPubMedGoogle Scholar
  • 7 Peeran SW, Ramalingam K, Peeran SA, Altaher OB, Alsaid FM, Mugrabi MH. Gingival pigmentation index proposal of a new index with a brief review of current indices. Eur J Dent 2014; 8 (02) 287-290
    Article in Thieme ConnectPubMedGoogle Scholar
  • 8 Lambertini M, Patrizi A, Fanti PA. et al. Oral melanoma and other pigmentations: when to biopsy?. J Eur Acad Dermatol Venereol 2018; 32 (02) 209-214
    CrossrefPubMedGoogle Scholar
  • 9 Ferreira L, Jham B, Assi R, Readinger A, Kessler HP. Oral melanocytic nevi: a clinicopathologic study of 100 cases. Oral Surg Oral Med Oral Pathol Oral Radiol 2015; 120 (03) 358-367
    CrossrefPubMedGoogle Scholar
  • 10 Buchner A, Leider AS, Merrell PW, Carpenter WM. Melanocytic nevi of the oral mucosa: a clinicopathologic study of 130 cases from northern California. J Oral Pathol Med 1990; 19 (05) 197-201
    CrossrefPubMedGoogle Scholar
  • 11 De Giorgi V, Sestini S, Bruscino N. et al. Prevalence and distribution of solitary oral pigmented lesions: a prospective study. J Eur Acad Dermatol Venereol 2009; 23 (11) 1320-1323
    CrossrefPubMedGoogle Scholar
  • 12 Pennacchiotti G, Oviedo C, Ortega-Pinto A. Solitary pigmented lesions in oral mucosa in Latin American children: a case series. Pediatr Dermatol 2018; 35 (03) 374-377
    CrossrefPubMedGoogle Scholar
  • 13 Meleti M, Mooi WJ, Casparie MK, van der Waal I. Melanocytic nevi of the oral mucosa - no evidence of increased risk for oral malignant melanoma: an analysis of 119 cases. Oral Oncol 2007; 43 (10) 976-981
    CrossrefPubMedGoogle Scholar
  • 14 Gondak RO, da Silva-Jorge R, Jorge J, Lopes MA, Vargas PA. Oral pigmented lesions: clinicopathologic features and review of the literature. Med Oral Patol Oral Cir Bucal 2012; 17 (06) e919-e924
    CrossrefPubMedGoogle Scholar
  • 15 Kaugars GE, Heise AP, Riley WT, Abbey LM, Svirsky JA. Oral melanotic macules. A review of 353 cases. Oral Surg Oral Med Oral Pathol 1993; 76 (01) 59-61
    CrossrefPubMedGoogle Scholar
  • 16 Buchner A, Hansen LS. Pigmented nevi of the oral mucosa: a clinicopathologic study of 32 new cases and review of 75 cases from the literature. Part II. Analysis of 107 cases. Oral Surg Oral Med Oral Pathol 1980; 49 (01) 55-62
    CrossrefPubMedGoogle Scholar
  • 17 Albuquerque DM, Cunha JL, Roza AL. et al. Oral pigmented lesions: a retrospective analysis from Brazil. Med Oral Patol Oral Cir Bucal 2021; 26 (03) e284-e291
    CrossrefPubMedGoogle Scholar
  • 18 Dika E, Lambertini M, Pellegrini C. et al. Cutaneous and mucosal melanomas of uncommon sites: where do we stand now?. J Clin Med 2021; 10 (03) 10
    CrossrefPubMedGoogle Scholar
  • 19 Pour P, Tantachamrum T, Althoff J, Mohr U. Melanoma in the north of Thailand in the last ten years. Report from Chiang Mai University. Z Krebsforsch Klin Onkol Cancer Res Clin Oncol 1973; 80 (01) 31-35
    CrossrefPubMedGoogle Scholar
  • 20 Dhanuthai K, Rojanawatsirivej S, Thosaporn W. et al. Oral cancer: a multicenter study. Med Oral Patol Oral Cir Bucal 2018; 23 (01) e23-e29
    PubMedGoogle Scholar
  • 21 Shen ZY, Liu W, Bao ZX, Zhou ZT, Wang LZ. Oral melanotic macule and primary oral malignant melanoma: epidemiology, location involved, and clinical implications. Oral Surg Oral Med Oral Pathol Oral Radiol Endod 2011; 112 (01) e21-e25
    CrossrefPubMedGoogle Scholar
  • 22 Singh D, Pandey P, Singh MK, Kudva S. Prevalence of malignant melanoma in anatomical sites of the oral cavity: a meta-analysis. J Oral Maxillofac Pathol 2019; 23 (01) 129-135
    CrossrefPubMedGoogle Scholar
  • 23 Smith MH, Bhattacharyya I, Cohen DM. et al. Melanoma of the oral cavity: an analysis of 46 new cases with emphasis on clinical and histopathologic characteristics. Head Neck Pathol 2016; 10 (03) 298-305
    CrossrefPubMedGoogle Scholar
  • 24 Lee RJ, Lee SA, Lin T, Lee KK, Christensen RE. Determining the epidemiologic, outcome, and prognostic factors of oral malignant melanoma by using the Surveillance, Epidemiology, and End Results database. J Am Dent Assoc 2017; 148 (05) 288-297
    CrossrefPubMedGoogle Scholar
  • 25 Meleti M, Leemans CR, Mooi WJ, Vescovi P, van der Waal I. Oral malignant melanoma: a review of the literature. Oral Oncol 2007; 43 (02) 116-121
    CrossrefPubMedGoogle Scholar