Palisaded, encapsulated neuroma of the lip

A case of palisaded, encapsulated neuroma of the lower lip has been presented. To the best of our knowledge, this is the first reported instance in the dental literature. The lesion characteristically occurs on the skin of the face near the oral, nasal, and orbital mucocutaneous junctions and, therefore, is readily visible to the oral diagnostician. It occurs most often in middle-aged individuals and, although it may clinically mimic other lesions, the operative finding of an easily enucleated mass near a mucocutaneous junction should suggest this lesion in the differential diagnosis. Histologically, the lesion is characterized by three distinct zones--an outer compressed fibrous connective tissue capsule, an inner myxomatous zone, and a central zone of proliferating Schwann's cells arranged in interlacing fascicles with areas of palisaded cells and organoid structures. The lesion is treated by enucleation or excision and has no tendency to recur.