Intraosseous angiolipoma of the mandible

Abstract

Introduction: The angiolipoma is an uncommon histologic variant of lipomas, accounts for 5-17% of lipomas. Intraosseous lipomas of the jaws are extremely rare. The aim of the present article is to report and discuss another case of intramandibular angiolipoma.

Case report: A 66-year-old man was referred to the Dentistry Department for the diagnosis and treatment of a lesion in the mandible. Past medical history included HIV positivity. The patient was asymptomatic. A CT scan revealed the incidental finding of a well-defined radiolucent image in the right body of the mandible, in the edentulous first molar / second premolar region, with sclerotic margins, and in contact with the mandibular canal, that was preserved. A conservative enucleation under local anesthesia was decided, together with the patient. Histopathological findings were consistent with the diagnosis of angiolipoma.

Discussion: Clinically, most intraosseous lipomas are asymptomatic, including the present case. Histological findings are essential for the diagnosis of intraosseous angiolipoma: mature neoplastic adipocytes streaked with numerous interspersed vascular spaces / blood vessels surrounded by mast cells and filled with red cells and several fibrous microthrombi are characteristics of angiolipomas.

Conclusions: The diagnosis of intraosseous angiolipomas of the jaws may be difficult due to their rarity and it requires a histopathological examination.

Keywords: Angiolipoma; Diagnosis; Intraosseous; Mandible; Treatment.