Hamartomas of the oral cavity

Abstract

The majority of oral diseases present as growths and masses of varied cellular origin. Such masses may include simple hyperplasia, hamartoma, choristoma, teratoma, benign or malignant neoplasms. The distinguishing features of hamartomatous lesions are not certain, and often these non-neoplastic masses are indiscreetly denoted as neoplasms without weighing their pathology or biological behaviour. Essentially, understanding the dynamics of each of these disease processes forms an integral part of the appropriate treatment planning.

Lingual Leiomyomatous Hamartoma in an Adult Male

“…Hamartomas are pathologically subclassified, depending on the relative abundance of a particular endogenous tissue, and the variants described include vascular, muscle-predominant, adipose tissue-predominant, and intramuscular capillary variants where numerous thin-walled mature capillaries are interspersed between and around muscle bundles [ 5 ]. Within the oral cavity, local tissues that might result in hamartomatous growths include odontogenic and nonodontogenic epithelial derivatives, smooth and skeletal muscle, bone, vasculature, nerve, and fat [ 2 ]. The borders with the surrounding tissues are typically ill-defined, merging with surrounding tissues [ 6 ].…”

“…LLH most frequently occurs on the anterior palate in the region of the incisive papilla or gingiva and on the midline dorsal tongue, and this predilection may be due to the propensity to dysgenic events in the midline embryonic fusion regions [ 1 ]. The most important features of a LLH are its limited growth potential after adolescence and microscopic appearance of unencapsulated admixture of mature cells native to the anatomic location [ 2 ]. They are usually painless and relatively small lesions, and most of the published cases involve children ( Table 1 ).…”

“…The term hamartoma is used to describe a nonneoplastic, abnormal, and haphazard overgrowth of conglomerates of mature cells and tissues indigenous to the anatomic site from which it occurs, often with one predominating element [ 1 , 2 ]. This tumor-like malformation is benign, and most hamartomas are located in the liver, spleen, pancreas, and kidneys [ 3 ].…”

Development of a calcified odontogenic hamartoma following avulsion of a permanent central incisor

“…Hamartomas are a growth or mass of disordered normal tissues that are rare in the oral cavity and may present with diverse clinical and histopathological appearances. Most of these lesions are located in the tongue and present in individuals less than two years old . Since no similar cases of hamartomatous proliferation as a sequel after tooth avulsion were found in the dental literature, the aim of this case report was to describe the clinical management of an unusual case of an hamartomatous proliferation of odontogenic tissues with calcification that developed after the avulsion of an immature permanent central incisor in an eight‐year‐old female patient.…”

Hamartomas in the opercula of four unerupted primary molars

“…8 The term hamartoma can be defined as a "non-neoplastic, unifocal/ multifocal developmental malformation". 9 While the pathogenesis of hamartomas remain speculative, it is known that these tissues are most commonly derived from the mesoderm. 10 The hamartomas in our patient corresponded to OGCF, a term first coined by Philipsen et al, 7 to describe an odontogenic hamartomatous lesion present within the opercula of permanent first and second molars with delayed eruption.…”