The severity of OED was not associated with risk of malignant transformation, suggesting that the current OED grading system is not useful for predicting patient outcomes or for determining management strategies. Definitive treatment of all OED is recommended, until a more reliable progression/transformation system is developed.

Background: The prevalence of oral and maxillofacial pathology has not previously been reported in the Australian paediatric population. This study aimed to audit a large pathology service to provide insight into the prevalence of oral and maxillofacial pathology. Methods: Written records of a major Australian oral pathology service were imported into an electronic database. Age, gender and histological diagnosis were assessed. Prevalence of histological diagnoses as a percentage of the major diagnostic categories and of the whole sample were calculated, as well as gender predilections and mean age of presentation of disease. Results: A total of 1305 oral pathology specimens, collected from paediatric patients aged 16 and under were included in the analysis. The most common pathology was dental pathology (24.4%), followed by odontogenic cysts (18.5%) and mucosal pathology (17.0%). The most frequently encountered lesion was the dentigerous cyst (9.4%), followed by fibrous hyperplasia (8.3%), radicular cyst (5.2%) and chronic periapical granuloma (5.2%). Conclusions: In the paediatric population, dental pathology and specifically, the dentigerous cyst is the most common pathology type sent for histopathology, suggesting a high prevalence of pathology of dental origin occurring in Australian children.

Background: Globally, a decline in the incidence of oral cancer has been noted, while the mortality rates have remained relatively stable. The aim of this study was to provide an update on the incidence and mortality of oral cancer in Australia on a national and state level. Methods: Data regarding new cases and deaths associated with cancer of the lip, oral cavity and oropharynx were obtained from the Australian Institute of Health and Welfare for the period 1982-2008. Crude-and age-standardized incidence and mortality rates were calculated for all of Australia and for each state and territory. Results: A total of 60 826 cases of lip, oral cavity and oropharyngeal cancer were diagnosed in Australia. Between 1992 and 2008, a decline in the annual percentage change of age-standardized incidence was noted. The lip, followed by the tongue, continue to represent the most common sites of new oral cancer cases. There was no significant change in the rates of mortality for oral cancer over the time period. Conclusions: These findings show that the oral cancer mortality rate remains high despite a decline in incidence over the past three decades, highlighting a greater need for dental practitioners to undertake preventive strategies and opportunistic screening for patients.

No abstract

Background: The prevalence of oral and maxillofacial pathology has not previously been reported in the Australian adult population. This study aimed to audit a large pathology service to provide insight into the prevalence of head and neck pathologies. Methods: Written records of a major Australian oral pathology service were imported into an electronic database. Age, gender and histological diagnosis were assessed. Prevalence of histological diagnoses as a percentage of the major diagnostic categories and of the whole sample were calculated, as well as gender predilections and mean age of presentation of disease. Results: A total of 6344 oral pathology specimens, collected from adults aged 17 years and over were included in the analysis. Mucosal pathology was the most common pathology (37.2%), followed by odontogenic cysts (16.3%) and dental pathology (14.5%). The three most common histological diagnoses were fibrous hyperplasia (15.2%), chronic periapical granuloma (9.6%) and radicular cyst (9.5%). The male:female ratio of the entire sample was 0.74. Conclusions: This is the first study to describe the prevalence of oral and maxillofacial pathology among adult patients in an Australian population. The trends seen in this study are repeated in studies from other parts of the world, and are of diagnostic importance.