Physiological oral melanin pigmentation in a South African sample: A clinical study

Physiological oral melanin pigmentation is genetically determined, more frequently affecting people with darker skin. It can involve any oral mucosal site, but predominantly the gingiva. The aim of the present study was to determine the prevalence and to characterize the clinical features of physiological oral melanin pigmentation in a South African population sample.

A trainee in the discipline of periodontology and oral medicine interviewed all participants and examined the oral soft tissues. The diagnosis of physiological oral melanin pigmentation was based on clinical findings and on the history reported by the patient. A predetermined list of exclusion criteria was applied.

The study population comprised 430 participants, of whom 319 (74%) were black, 55 (13%) Indian, 54 (12.5%) white, and two (0.5%) were mixed race. A total of 182 participants were diagnosed with physiological oral melanin pigmentation. The overall prevalence of physiological oral melanin pigmentation in the ethnically-mixed study population was 42%: 54% of blacks were affected, 16% of Indians, and 21% of whites. The female (101): male (81) ratio was 1.2:1; the gingiva was the site most frequently affected (73%). The total number of oral mucosal sites with physiological oral melanin pigmentation in the study population was 263; 68% of participants had one, 22% had two, 7% had three, and 3% had four sites affected. There was no significant association between the number of sites affected and sex or age.

In this study of a South African population sample, the prevalence of physiological oral melanin pigmentation was higher in blacks than in Indians or whites, and the gingiva was the oral mucosal site most frequently affected.