Oral and maxillofacial pathologies in young- and middle-aged adults

Objective: To evaluate the distribution of oral and maxillofacial pathologies (OMFPs) and its association with patient age in young- and middle-aged adults. Methods: Distribution of histopathologically diagnosed OMFPs (n = 385) treated during 2007-2010 was recorded and the association with patient age was retrospectively analyzed. Results: The main diagnostic categories included benign exophytic lesions (45.3%), white benign lesions (13.5%), potentially malignant lesions/disorders (10.1%), intrabony lesions (9.8%), mucosal discoloration (7.8%), benign pigmented lesions (7.3%), chronic trauma/inflammation (3.9%), and oral malignancy (2.1%). Potentially malignant lesions/disorders as a diagnostic category were positively associated with age (OR = 1.07 for 1 year; P < 0.001) and specifically the diagnoses of oral lichen planus (OR = 1.04 for 1 year; P = 0.037) and dysplastic changes (OR = 1.08 for 1 year; P = 0.013) that comprised this category. Pigmented melanocytic lesions were negatively associated with age (OR = 0.94 for 1 year; P = 0.039) as well as benign/reactive exophytic lesions (OR = 0.98 for 1 year; P = 0.038), the latter included the histopathological diagnosis of benign salivary gland pathologies (OR = 0.90 for 1 year; P < 0.001). Conclusion: This study provided baseline information regarding the distribution OMFPs among young- and middle-aged adults. It is important to highlight the high frequency of potentially malignant lesions/disorders and oral malignancy in young- and middle-aged adults, as these lesions require lifelong follow-up.