Content Dam Diq En Articles 2019 01 Bc Oral Pathology Case 39 The Non Bothersome Soft Tissue Lesion Leftcolumn Article Thumbnailimage File

BC oral pathology case No. 39: The 'non-bothersome' soft-tissue lesion

Jan. 25, 2019
In this oral pathology case, a 28-year-old patient presents with a nonpainful lesion on the floor of the mouth. What would be the proposed course of action?

A 28-year-old male presented for routine six-month hygiene recall. Initial information was as follows:

  • Noncontributory medical history
  • Patient denies tobacco use or alcohol abuse
  • No prescription medications

During an oral cancer screening, a soft tissue lesion was noted on the floor of the mouth at the junction of the ventral surface of the tongue (figure 1).

Figure 1: Patient presentation

The lesion was offset to the left, but appeared to cross the midline based upon the position of the frenum. The lesion was about 1.5 cm x 1 cm. Upon palpation, the tissue was firm but not indurated and mobile as one mass. The patient reported no symptoms other than mild discomfort upon palpation. When asked about the duration of the lesion, the patient stated he had been aware of it for around two to three weeks, but it was not bothering him.

What would be the proposed course of action? What should be included in the list of differential diagnoses?

Editor's note

The diagnosis for this case will be presented in next month's issue of the Breakthrough Clinical e-newsletter. To subscribe, visit dentaleconomics.com/newsletter. For more oral pathology articles, visit DentistryIQ oral pathology blog.

Call for pathology cases

Do you have an interesting oral pathology case you would like to share with the readers of Breakthrough Clinical? If so, submit the following to [email protected]:

  • Clinical radiograph or high-resolution photograph
  • Patient history
  • Diagnosis
  • Treatment rendered
Travis G. Heaton, DDS, is a graduate of the University of Texas School of Dentistry at Houston and maintains a private practice in Tyler, Texas.