Clinicopathologic characterization of oral angioleiomyomas

Abstract

Objective: The purpose of this study was to better define the clinicopathologic features of oral angioleiomyomas.

Study design: A retrospective search was performed for angioleiomyomas among all smooth muscle tumors accessioned from 1963 to 2001 in an oral pathology service. Twelve lesions met histopathologic criteria for inclusion in the study and were combined with 97 additional cases identified from the English language literature, yielding 109 cases for evaluation.

Results: The mean age of the patients with oral angioleiomyomas was 45.0 years, with a 1.43:1 male to female predilection. The most frequently reported site was the lip, in 48.6% of patients, followed by the palate (21.1%), buccal mucosa and tongue (each 9.2%), mandible (8.3%), and buccal sulcus, labial sulcus, floor of mouth, and gingiva (each 0.9%). Most mucosal lesions varied in size from a few millimeters to 2 cm, with most central lesions of the mandible measuring greater than 2 cm. Although angioleiomyomas are vascular lesions, only 55.9% of cases appeared red, blue, or purple; the remainder were gray, white, or the color of normal mucosa. Tumors were typically described as painless and manifested a low growth rate. All lesions were well circumscribed and composed of numerous vascular spaces surrounded by thick smooth muscle walls.

Conclusion: Oral angioleiomyomas are benign smooth muscle tumors with a limited degree of morbidity. Careful histologic inspection is necessary to distinguish these lesions from their malignant counterpart, the leiomyosarcoma. Surgical excision is the treatment of choice, and recurrence is rarely encountered.