Oral Medicine and Oral Pathology Flashcards

A radiopaque lesion surrounded by a radiolucent halo is found at the root apex of a non-vital tooth in a 30-year-old. What is the most likely diagnosis?

Answer: Cementoblastoma

Cementoblastoma presents as a well-defined radiopaque mass fused to the root of a vital or non-vital tooth, surrounded by a thin radiolucent rim, and often causes expansion.

Which type of oral cancer is most strongly associated with high-risk HPV infection, particularly HPV-16?

Answer: Oropharyngeal squamous cell carcinoma

High-risk HPV-16 is strongly associated with oropharyngeal squamous cell carcinoma (tonsils, base of tongue), particularly in younger non-smokers, and carries a better prognosis than HPV-negative tumors.

A patient presents with a blue, dome-shaped, fluctuant lesion on the floor of the mouth that displaces the tongue. What is the most likely diagnosis?

Answer: Ranula

A ranula is a mucus-retention or extravasation phenomenon arising from the sublingual or submandibular salivary glands, presenting as a blue, fluctuant swelling on the floor of the mouth.

The 'sunburst' or 'sunray' pattern on radiographs of the jaw in a teenager is most characteristic of which malignancy?

Answer: Osteosarcoma

Osteosarcoma classically produces a 'sunburst' or 'sunray' radiographic pattern due to periosteal reaction perpendicular to the cortex, often seen in adolescents and young adults.

Which condition is characterized by intense burning of the oral mucosa with no identifiable clinical or laboratory abnormality and predominantly affects postmenopausal women?

Answer: Burning mouth syndrome

Burning mouth syndrome (BMS) is a chronic orofacial pain disorder with burning sensations but no identifiable mucosal lesions; it predominantly affects postmenopausal women and has multifactorial etiology.

A painless, lobulated mass arising from the interdental papilla with a pedunculated base is found in a 28-year-old pregnant woman. What is the most likely diagnosis?

Answer: Pyogenic granuloma

Pyogenic granuloma (pregnancy tumor/epulis gravidarum) is a highly vascular reactive lesion that commonly arises from the gingival papilla and is exacerbated by hormonal changes during pregnancy.

Necrotizing sialometaplasia most commonly occurs on the hard palate and can mimic squamous cell carcinoma clinically and histologically. What is its most likely etiology?

Answer: Ischemic infarction of salivary gland tissue

Necrotizing sialometaplasia results from ischemic necrosis of minor salivary gland lobules, typically following trauma, surgery, or vascular compromise, with subsequent squamous metaplasia of ducts.