Cysts of the Jaws Flashcards
What is a cyst by definition?
A pathological cavity having fluid, semi-fluid or gaseous contents & which is not created by the accumulation of pus
Are cysts characteristically filled with pus?
NO
- only when cyst infected
What is usually the rate of progression of cysts?
Slow growing (but cyst dependant)
What are the common symptoms of odontogenic cysts?
- eggshell crackling (when pt presses area)
- mobility of adjacent teeth
- sensitivity of teeth in area
- absence of teeth in area
- numbness or neurological change
What special investigations may you do to investigate potential cystic lesions?
- take radiographs
- sensibility testing of adjacent teeth
What are some typical radiographic features of cysts?
- spherical or egg-shaped
- well defined margins
- corticated
- can be unilocular or multilocular
- may include unerupted teeth
How do most cysts grow generally?
by hydrostatic pressure
What effect on surrounding anatomy may cysts have that can be seen on radiographs?
Displacement of:
- cortical plates
- adjacent teeth
- maxillary sinus
- IAN canal
How could the locularity of this cyst be described?
Pseudolocular
What might cause a cyst to lose definition & cortication of margins?
Infection of cyst
What is the most common cause of bony swelling in the jaws?
Odontogenic cysts
- >90% of all cysts in the oral and maxfax region
How can the lining of odontogenic cysts be described?
Lined with epithelium
What are some odontogemic sources of epithelium?
- Rests of Malassez (remnants of Hertwig’s epithelial rooth sheath)
- Rests of Serres (remnants of the dental lamina)
- Reduced enamel epithelium (remnants of enamel organ)
Why might epithelium remnants become activated to form cysts?
- idiopathic
- infections
- cytokine infiltrations
What type of cysts can arise from the reduced enamel epithelium?
Dentigerous cyst
What are the most common odontogenic cysts?
- radicular cysts (60%)
- dentigerous cysts (18%)
- odontogenic keratocyst (12%)
What causes radicular cysts?
Initiated by chronic inflammation at apex of tooth due to pulp necrosis
- always associated with a non-vital tooth
What is the incidence of radicular cysts?
- most common in 4th&5th decades
- 60% maxilla: 40% mandible
- can involve any tooth
How do radicular cysts present?
- often asymptomatic (can become painful if infected)
- typically slow-growing with limited expansion
How do you tell between a periapical granuloma vs radicular cyst?
- radicular cysts typically larger (usually >15mm)
- radicular cysts typically have defined corticated margins on radiograph
- can only tell under microscope
What are the radiographic features of a radicular cyst?
- well defined, round/oval radiolucency
- corticated margin continuous with lamina dura of non-vital tooth
- larger lesions displace adjaecent structures
- long standing lesions may cause external root resorption &/or dystrophic calcification
What are the histological features of a radicular cyst?
- epithelial lining
- connective tissue capsule
- inflammation in capsule
(dark dots are inflammatory cells)
What cell types proliferate in periapical granulomas?
Epithelial rests of Malassez
What can radicular cysts form by?
- proliferating epithelium with central necrosis
- epithelium surrounds fluid area
How can the growth patten of radicular cysts be described?
Infiltration growth pattern
What is mucous metaplasia?
Epithelial cells become mucous secreting cells during cystic change
What is viewed here?
Hyaline/rushton bodies
What is viewed histologically here?
cholesterol clefts
What can cause numbness of IAN?
- infection
- trauma
- injury to nerve
- tumours
- cysts
What can cause radiopaque artifacts on receptors?
pressure from fingerprints
What are different variants of radicular cysts?
- residual cysts [when cyst persists after loss of tooth]
- lateral radicular cyst [radicular cyst associated with an accessory canal, located at side of tooth instead of apex]