Extra-oral soft tissue assessment

Question 1

Outline

Answer 1

Dentists will often visibly assess while meeting + greeting pt + charting to them before beginning intra-oral assessments. In particular, they will be looking + palpating the following structures for signs of abnormality:

Question 2

External facial signs

Answer 2

checking skin colour, facial symmetry + presence of any blemishes, especially moles + cold sores

Question 3

The lips

Answer 3

checking for any change in colour or size, the presence of any blemishes + palpated for any abnormalities

Question 4

The lymph nodes

Answer 4

lying under the mandible + in the neck, these are palpated to detect any swellings or abnormalities, the presence of which may indicate infection or a more sinister lesion

Question 5

Variations in skin colour do occur

Answer 5

especially in different ethnic groups. But unusual facial appearance can sometimes indicate problems, such as nervous pt becoming pale + clammy as they are about to faint, or the unnatural ruddiness of a pt with hypertension

Question 6

Facial asymmetry

Answer 6

could indicate the presence of swelling or problems with nerve supply or muscular control of that area, all which require further investigation

Question 7

Sudden appearance of unusual skin blemishes

Answer 7

such as mole, may indicate presence early skin cancer (melanoma) which will need urgent referral for trt

Question 8

Lips are examined + details recorded

Answer 8

of blemishes like cold sores indicating herpes simplex type 1 infection or minor salivary gland cysts (mucoceles).
Lips that are tinged blueish purple indicate some degree of chronic heart failure, which needs noting before LA + traumatic dental procedures are carried out

Question 9

Lymph nodes

Answer 9

part of body’s immune system, any enlargement of those accessible to the dentist in the head or neck indicates the body is fighting infection or some other disease + requires further investigation