The oxytalan connective tissue fibres in gingival hyperplasia in patients treated with sodium diphenyl‐hydantoin

Abstract

Oxytalan fibres in hyperplastic gingival papillae from 12 young epileptics who had been treated with sodium diphenyl‐hydantoin were studied with modifications of Fullmer and Lillie's (1958) and Löe and Nuki's (1964) staining methods. These fibres were compared with the fibres in clinically normal gin‐givac and in tissue from fibrous epulides. Fibres reacting with peracetic acid‐aldehyde fuchsin (i.e. oxytalan fibres) were present throughout the connective tissue and were especially numerous near the surface epithelium and in areas of inflammatory infiltration. The oxytalan fibres were especially prominent along the junction with epithelium, between the rete pegs and in the deeper connective tissue near bone where they tended to be arranged in large parallel bundles. In cases of fibrous epulis, however, there were very few oxytalan fibres in the connective tissue adjacent to the surface epithelium. It is concluded that the connective tissue performs an important supportive function to the epithelium in gingival hyperplasia, and is of special importance in the genesis of gingival hyperplasia in patients under treatment with sodium diphenyl‐hydantoin.

Histochemical and immunohistochemical localisation of elastic system fibres in focal reactive overgrowths of oral mucosa

“…Previous reports have described elastic system fibres in fibrous oral mucosal lesions (29)(30)(31)(32), However, none ofthese reports was able to identify elastin positively and some of the terminology was confusing, so direct comparison with this study is difficult. For example, OLES (29) identified elastic system fibres in seventeen of twenty-five 'oral fibromas' that originated from buccal, lingual, gingival and dentoalveolar ridge mueosa.…”