A retrospective analysis of oral and maxillofacial lesions in children and adolescents reported in two different services.

Background Most epidemiological studies involving oral and maxillofacial lesions assess only data from histopathological analysis. This may lead to a poor notification of diseases whose diagnosis is predominantly clinical. Aim: To evaluate and to compare the frequency of oral and maxillofacial lesions in children and adolescents in two different types of services: Oral Medicine clinic service and laboratory service. Material and Methods The records of patients ≤ 19 years attending the Oral Medicine clinic service and records from the laboratory service in Oral and Maxillofacial Pathology of the Dental School of a university were analyzed. Results 828 records from the Oral Medicine clinic service and 2,409 records from the laboratory service were analyzed. The most common lesion group in both services was inflammatory/reactive lesions; however, infectious lesions and variations of normality were more frequently in the clinical service. Mucocele was the most common lesion in both services. The lips (28.9%) were the most affected region in the clinical service, while in the laboratory service, the bones (34.7%) were the most affected region. Conclusions Some differences may occur with respect to the frequency of oral and maxillofacial lesions among pediatric individuals when data from different sources are compared. Key words:Epidemiology, oral and maxillofacial pathology, oral medicine, oral and maxillofacial lesions, children, adolescents.