Clinicopathological study of Odontogenic Cysts -A Retrospective Study

: Odontogenic cysts are characterized by a pathological cavity either completely or partially covered with epithelial tissue. These cysts are one of the most common osseous -destructive lesions affecting the jaws. The aim of the present study was to determine the relative prevalence of odontogenic cysts and to identify the clinicopathological characteristics. Methodology : A retrospective observational study was conducted on 1011 histopathological reports from January 2008 to December 2012. Patients with radicular cysts, dentigerous cysts, odontogenic keratocysts, lateral periodontal cysts and glandular odontogenic cysts were further analyzed. The following variables were recorded: age, gender, clinical characteristics of the lesions such as size, location and association with impacted teeth and a descriptive analysis of the study variables was carried out. Results: Among 1011 biopsy reports analyzed, 131 cases of odontogenic cysts (13%) were diagnosed. The age of patients ranged from 10 to 85 years. The gender distribution showed a male predilection (n=81; 62%), compared to females (n=50; 38%). The lesion size ranged from 3-130 mm; with a mean size of 18 mm. The mandible (n=74; 56%) was more commonly involved than the maxilla (n=57; 44%). The majority of cysts were detected in the posterior mandible followed by the anterior maxilla. Impacted teeth most commonly associated with odontogenic cysts was lower third molar, followed by upper canine. Conclusion: Radicular cysts, dentigerous cysts and odontogenic keratocysts were the most common cystic lesions, accounting for 88.9% of all odontogenic cysts, with radicular cysts being most common. INTRODUCTION Odontogenic cysts (OC) are characterized by a pathological cavity either completely or partially covered with epithelial tissue.' These cysts are one of the most common osseous -destructive lesions affecting the jaws. These cysts arise from the epithelial components of the odontogenic apparatus or its remnants that lie entrapped within bone or in the gingival tissue.2 They are classified traditionally into a developmental group including keratocysts , dentigerous cysts (DC), lateral periodontal cysts (LPC), glandular odontogenic cysts (GOC) and an inflammatory group including radicular (apical, lateral and residual) cysts (RC).3 Odontogenic cysts are characterized by a slow growth and an expansive tendency and in spite of being entitities which present a benign biological behavior; they can reach considerable size if they are not diagnosed in time and treated appropriately.4 Some odontogenic cysts such as odontogenic keratocysts present a locally aggressive behavior and are prone to recurrence' Therefore, the correct diagnosis of these lesions is essential for correct surgical treatment. In addition, a number of cystic lesions of the jaws share similar clinical and radiographic features; the diagnosis of odontogenic cysts usually requires a detailed analysis of clinical, radiographic and histopathologic findings.' The present study was designed to know the relative frequency of the odontogenic cysts (i.e. radicular cysts, dentigerous cysts, odontogenic keratocysts (OKC), lateral periodontal cysts and glandular odontogenic cysts), their clinicopathological characteristics (i.e. age, gender, clinical characteristics of the lesions like the size, location and association with impacted teeth and descriptive analysis) and to compare our findings with other publications from different geographic areas (i.e. Brazil,