Oral manifestations of juvenile hyaline fibromatosis: a case report

Hyaline fibromatosis is a rare autosomal recessive disease of connective tissue, characterised by an accumulation of hyaline in the skin as well as various organs. The clinical features include: multiple cutaneous nodules, joint contractures, osteolytic lesions and gingival hypertrophy. This paper reports the case of an 11-year-old boy, who was referred to our dental clinic complaining of pain in his mouth. On examination, the patient had gross maxillary and mandibular gingival hyperplasia, which caused severe feeding difficulties. He also had severe dental decay, mal-positioned teeth and limited mouth opening. Treatment was done under general anesthesia to remove excess gingival tissue and extract the severely decayed teeth. Histological examination confirmed the diagnosis of juvenile hyaline fibromatosis. It was concluded that patients with this condition have special dental needs. Early diagnosis of the affected children is important in order to start early preventive dental therapy.