Diagnostic delay in autoimmune oral diseases.

Autoimmune diseases (ADs) affect about 5% of the general population, causing various systemic and/or topical clinical manifestations. The oral mucosa is often affected, sometimes as the only involved site. The misdiagnosis of oral ADs is an underreported issue.

The role of the dentist in the diagnosis and management of patients with oral mucosal diseases.

Based on a few case reports of oral mucosal diseases a number of questions is raised about the role of dentists-general practitioners in the diagnostic procedure and management of patients with such diseases. For instance, are dentists prepared to prescribe topical corticosteroids and should dentists be taught how and when to take a biopsy? And how about palpation of the neck? A strong recommendation is made to take clinical pictures for proper documentation and, if needed, for telediagnostic procedures. Another issue relates to the communication between dentists and dental specialists when dealing with patients with oral diseases.

Professional diagnostic delay in osteosarcomas of the jaws.

A series of 20 consecutive patients with an osteosarcoma of the jaws has been evaluated with regard to possible professional diagnostic delay. When set at an arbitrarily chosen period beyond three months, professional delay occurred in 15 patients, the mean being 21 months and the median 11 months. In five of the 15 patients a wrong diagnosis has been rendered on the biopsy specimen, being fibrous dysplasia (2x), osteoma (2x) and, in case of palatomaxillary swelling, pleomorphic adenoma (1x).

Oral leukoplakia; a proposal for simplification and consistency of the clinical classification and terminology.

There is a distinct lack of uniformity in the definitions and clinical terminologies related to oral leukoplakia and leukoplakialike lesions and disorders. Proposals have been put forward to subclassify leukoplakia into a homogeneous and a non-homogeneous type based on color only, being either predominantly white or mixed whiteand-red, respectively, irrespective of the texture of the lesion. In this proposal there is no need anymore to regard the poorly defined proliferative verrucous leukoplakia as a separate entity.