Odontogenic tumors: a retrospective clinicopathological study from two Italian centers.

OBJECTIVE: The aim of this retrospective study was to perform an epidemiological analysis of all odontogenic tumors treated in the University Hospitals "Ospedali Riuniti" in Ancona and "Policlinico" in Bari, from 1990 to 2015. MATERIALS AND METHODS: A retrospective survey of 277 patients treated for odontogenic tumors from 1990 to 2015 was performed. Data were retrieved from the archives of the above quoted Sections of Pathology. The lesions were classified according to 2005 WHO histological classification, and the following variables were analyzed: age, sex, histopathological diagnosis, site distribution, tumor size, and relapses. Peripheral odontogenic tumors were analyzed considering these lesions separately from their central counterparts. RESULTS: In a total of 344 surgical specimens, there were 277 primary tumors and 67 recurrences. As regards primary lesions, there were 185 odontogenic keratocysts (keratocystic odontogenic tumors) (66.8%), 49 ameloblastomas (17.7%), and 40 other benign odontogenic tumors (14.4%). As to malignant tumors, only 3 ameloblastic carcinomas were found (1.1%). The mean age was 46.7 years, with a M:F ratio of 1.8:1. The mandible was the most common site of localization, with 211 cases (76.2%). Also, 21 cases of peripheral odontogenic tumors were found, ameloblastomas being the most common (8 cases, 38.1%). CONCLUSIONS: There is a wide variety of cysts, some of which are subject to variations according to sex, localization, and age. Odontogenic tumors are rare neoplasms and appear to show variations according to sex, localization, and age, and may be useful to the clinicians who need to make clinical judgments before biopsy about the most probable diagnosis.