Nonmalignant nonendodontic lesions mimicking periapical lesions of endodontic origin: A systematic review.

The objective of the study is to describe the clinical and radiographic features of nonmalignant nonendodontic periapical lesions (NMNPLs) mimicking lesions of endodontic cause. Five electronic databases, PubMed, Web of Science, Scopus, Embase, and ProQuest, were searched (till July 2021) for case reports, case series, and cross-sectional studies, in English language, reporting NMNPLs, which were clinically and/or radiographically simulating periapical pathosis of endodontic origin. Data extraction was done followed by quality assessment of the included articles using the Joanna Briggs Institute tool for case reports and case series. Seventy-three articles comprising 176 cases were included. Sixty-one articles were case reports, nine articles were case series, and three articles were retrospective studies. Male:female ratio was 1.5:1, with a higher prevalence of lesions occurring in the fourth and second decades of life. The majority of the lesions were located in the anterior maxilla. Radiographically, most of the lesions were well defined, radiolucent, and unilocular. Histologically, 29 different types of NMNPLs were reported, with the most common ones being odontogenic keratocyst (25.56%), dentigerous cyst (17.61%), ameloblastoma (11.36%), nasopalatine duct cyst (10.79%), and adenomatoid odontogenic tumor (5.68%). As all the included studies were observational, the quality of available evidence is considered low. Various features such as loss of tooth vitality, history of trauma, and presence of periapical radiolucency may lead to misdiagnosis of NMNPLs and must be considered during diagnosis of the lesion. Additional imaging modalities and histopathology can aid in right diagnosis.

Prevalence of Nonendodontic Diagnoses in Periapical Biopsies: A 6-year Institutional Experience.

INTRODUCTION: The purpose of this study was to identify nonendodontic periapical lesions (NPLs) mimicking endodontic pathosis, which are most frequently encountered by clinicians. METHODS: A retrospective study was conducted on biopsies obtained from 2015-2020 at Texas A&M College of Dentistry's oral pathology laboratory. The online database was screened for cases submitted as suspected endodontic pathology using specific key words. Histologic diagnoses were collected to determine the prevalence of NPLs that were originally thought to be of endodontic origin. The frequency and percentage of endodontic pathology and NPLs were documented. RESULTS: Among 6704 biopsies clinically diagnosed as endodontic lesions, 190 (2.8%) were histopathologically diagnosed as NPLs. The most frequent NPLs were odontogenic keratocytes' (n = 70, 36.8%), cemento-osseous dysplasia (n = 27, 14.2%), and dentigerous cysts (n = 22, 11.6%). Of all NPLs, 3.7% were malignant neoplasms, with the most common diagnosis being squamous cell carcinoma. Of 6514 endodontic histologic diagnoses, the prevalence of periapical granulomas and cysts was 60.2% (n = 3924) and 39.1% (n = 2549), respectively. CONCLUSIONS: Although most endodontic submissions are likely to be histologically diagnosed as periapical granulomas or cysts, the clinician should be aware that a small portion of these lesions may be nonendodontic in origin and possibly neoplastic in nature. Histopathologic evaluation of biopsied specimens is critical to achieve a proper diagnosis to ensure the appropriate management of patients.

Malignant Lesions Mimicking Endodontic Pathoses Lesion: A Systematic Review.

INTRODUCTION: Malignant nonendodontic periapical lesions represent a rare diagnosis, in which few case have been reported about this condition. Due to the low occurrence and little exploration of this subject, serious errors of diagnosis are observed in the oral medicine services. In this sense, the purpose of the present review was to integrate the information on the record published on malignant lesions that mimic endodontic pathoses into a comprehensive analysis of their clinical, radiologic, and histopathologic features. METHODS: An online search was made in March 2020 in the following databases: Pubmed, Web of Science, and Scopus. Eligibility criteria included publications having enough clinical, radiologic, and histopathologic information to confirm the diagnosis. Data were assessed descriptively. RESULTS: Forty-nine publications from 16 countries comprising 60 cases were included. There is a nearly equal occurrence rate between males and females (male/female ratio is 49.15%/50.84%) with a mean age of 46.56 years. The lesions were more prevalent in the posterior mandibles (40.69%), and, radiographically, they were unilocular radiolucent. Histopathologic analysis showed metastasis (26.67%) as the most prevalent lesion followed by salivary gland malignant disease (25%). CONCLUSIONS: The present systematic review revealed several histologic types of malignant periapical lesions that could be mimicking endodontic pathoses. Because these lesions usually do not show clinical or radiologic features of malignant alteration, clinicians should consider these hypotheses in their routine.