Treatment of cherubism with salmon calcitonin: a case report

Cherubism is a familial disease of the jaws which is inherited via autosomal dominant manner. Typical features of cherubism include a painless bilateral, symmetrical enlargement of the jaws, misalignment of teeth, and intra-osseous central giant cell granuloma-like lesions, which are usually evident in early childhood. Treatment of cherubism consists of local curettage of the lesions, jaw contouring, intralesional steroid injections, and systemic calcitonin administration as well. Calcitonin therapy for central giant cell granuloma of the jaws is well documented, and favorable results have been achieved. However, fewer reports have been presented in regard to calcitonin administration for cherubism. In the present report, a 14-year-old boy with cherubism who had intra-osseous cherubic lesions in his mandible was treated with an administration of 200 IU systemic calcitonin every other day via his nasal passage for duration of more than two years. After 30 months of calcitonin therapy, the lesions in the mandible were significantly regressed, and calcitonin application was ceased. Despite some drawbacks, such as unpredictable efficient absorption and patient tolerability, nasal administration is the easiest way to use calcitonin therapy on children. In this report, every-other-day applications of calcitonin increased patient tolerability and might be considered as an effective treatment for mild cherubic lesions.