Odontogenic sinus tracts in the face and neck region are relatively uncommon and may present a diagnostic problem. As specific dental symptoms usually are absent in these cases, patients generally visit physician first for the evaluation and treatment because of the absence of dental symptoms. These cutaneous sinus tracts are most commonly located on the chin, cheek or in the submandibular area and rarely in the nasal region. Diagnostic errors can result in multiple surgical excisions and biopsies, long-term antibiotic therapy and even radiation therapy or electrodessication.1 The primary odontogenic disorder that results in such cutaneous lesions is typically a chronic periapical abscess or an impacted tooth or a root piece. We report two cases of extraoral sinus tracts, which were diagnosed as cutaneous sinus tracts of dental origin only after the failure of initial misdirected therapy.
scite is a Brooklyn-based organization that helps researchers better discover and understand research articles through Smart Citations–citations that display the context of the citation and describe whether the article provides supporting or contrasting evidence. scite is used by students and researchers from around the world and is funded in part by the National Science Foundation and the National Institute on Drug Abuse of the National Institutes of Health.