ORIGINAL ARTICLES   

Minerva Stomatologica 2010 June;59(6):325-32

Copyright © 2010 EDIZIONI MINERVA MEDICA

language: English

Mucoepidermoid carcinoma: a retrospective study

Miguens S. A. Jr., Uchoa Vasconcelos A. C., Figueiredo M. A., Soares Yurgel L., Salum F., Cherubini K. ✉

¹ School of Dentistry, Luteran University of Brazil, Canoas, Rio Grande do Sul, Brazil; ² Pontifical Catholic, University of Rio Grande do Sul, Porto Alegre, Rio Grande do Sul, Brazil

AIM: The aim of this study was to review the cases of mucoepidermoid carcinoma diagnosed at the Stomatology Service of São Lucas Hospital (PUCRS).
METHODS: Medical charts were reviewed focusing on the sex and age of the patients, clinical aspect, anatomic site, signs and symptoms, size and histological grade of the lesion.
RESULTS AND CONCLUSION: Of the 19383 patients who were seen between 1978 and 2009, 675 (3.48%) had a histopathological diagnosis of malignant neoplasm of the oral maxillofacial region including 12 (1.78%) cases of mucoepidermoid carcinoma. The mean age of patients with mucoepidermoid carcinoma was 43.8 years, and there was a predilection for males (58.7%). All cases occurred in the minor salivary glands, and the palate was the site most frequently affected (41.7%). Pain and local irritation were present in 50% of cases, and the size of lesions ranged from 0.3 cm to 5.0 cm. The histological classification of low- and intermediate-grade occurred at the same frequency (36.4%), and symptoms (pain, local irritation) occurred indiscriminately in different grades of tumor.