Metastases to the oral cavity.

Metastatic spread to the oral cavity of a malignant neoplasm is a rare yet important sign of advanced systemic malignant disease. This manuscript briefly describes the metastatic process and highlights the most common neoplasms that metastasise to the oral cavity as well as their clinical and radiological presentations. The role of the patients' history in suspecting metastatic disease and the importance of a microscopic diagnosis is emphasised.

Sucking-pads and primitive sucking reflex.

Sucking pads are hyperkeratotic thickenings of the inner aspect of the vermillion border of the lips of neonates. They develop around the 25th week of gestation and are the result of the primitive sucking reflex which is brain-stem mediated. The presence of sucking pads at birth represents an effective sucking reflex and as such it is recommended as a screening tool that indicates an intact motor neuron function in neonates.