Geographic stomatitis is an uncommon inflammatory condition of unknown etiology. It is characterized by reddish areas surrounded by white borders affecting any location in the oral cavity and presenting a migratory and cyclic pattern. The most common affected sites include buccal mucosa, labial mucosa and mucobuccal fold. Some patients can complain of pain or burning sensation. There are few reports in the literature about this entity and its relationship with other oral and cutaneous conditions such as fissured tongue, Reiter’s syndrome, atopy and psoriasis has been suggested but it is still controversial. In the present study we describe three cases of geographic stomatitis associated with fissured tongue. Lesions involved the buccal mucosa, labial mucosa, soft palate and mucobuccal fold and all cases were diagnosed based on their clinical features. All patients were oriented about the innocuous behavior of the condition and were advised to avoid exposure of the lesions to irritation factors. The three presented cases highlighted the importance of a detailed oral mucosal examination by clinicians and provided further information about the natural history and clinical presentation of geographic stomatitis. Key words:Geographic stomatitis, geographic mucositis, geographic tongue.

Background Several nonendodontic diseases can occur in the periapical region, resembling endodontic inflammatory conditions. Therefore, the aim of the present study was to determine the frequency of nonendodontic periapical lesions diagnosed in a Brazilian population. Material and Methods The files of two Oral Pathology laboratories were reviewed and all cases including at least one clinical diagnosis of endodontic periapical lesions were selected for the study. After initial selection, demographic and clinical data, clinical diagnosis and final diagnosis were reviewed and tabulated. Final diagnosis included endodontic periapical lesions, and benign and malignant nonendodontic periapical lesions. Data were descriptively and comparatively analyzed among the three groups, with a significance level of 5% ( p <0.05). Results Nonendodontic periapical lesions were identified in 208 (19%) out of the 1.125 registries included in the final sample. Benign nonendodontic periapical lesions (200 cases, 18%) were mostly odontogenic keratocysts, ameloblastomas, nasopalatine cysts, dentigerous cysts, glandular odontogenic cysts, and benign fibroosseous lesions. Malignant nonendodontic periapical lesions (8 cases, 1%) included carcinomas, adenocarcinomas, and melanoma. In general, nonendodontic periapical lesions were more common in males and in the posterior mandible ( p >0.05). Conclusions The frequency of nonendodontic periapical lesions was high and, although the general distribution was similar to the results from other populations, some features were probably associated with the profile of the studied populations and to the methods applied in the present study. Knowledge on differential diagnosis of endodontic and nonendodontic periapical lesions is essential to avoid unnecessary treatments and diagnostic delay in routine dental practice. Key words: Differential diagnosis, nonendodontic, periapical lesion, pulp necrosis.