Verrucous Hyperplasia: Case report and differential diagnosis

Verrucous hyperplasia (VH) is a rare exophytic oral mucosal lesion which can transform into verrucous carcinoma (VC), its malignant but clinically similar counterpart. These entities can be distinguished by the lack of invasive growth in VH cases; as such, it is essential to include a margin with adequate depth when performing a biopsy of the epithelium of the lesion. We report an 80-year-old male patient who presented to the Bapuji Dental College & Hospital, Davangere, Karanataka, India, in 2011 with a warty whitish-pink growth on the inside of his cheek. The patient was treated with wide surgical excision of the lesion and a diagnosis of VH was made based on histopathological features. There was no evidence of recurrence at a five-year follow-up. This report highlights the histological variations, pathogenesis and differential diagnosis of VH.