Peripheral odontogenic myxoma in a 12-year-old girl: a rare entity

Peripheral odontogenic myxoma is a rare odontogenic tumor representing an extra osseous counterpart of central odontogenic myxoma. It is commonly seen in gingiva between the 3rd and 4th decades of life and appears predominantly in females. Compared to central odontogenic myxoma, it is a less aggressive, slow-growing lesion with a low recurrence rate. However, close postoperative follow-up is required because of the unlimited growth potential of incompletely removed lesions. It shares many features with other soft tissue myxoid proliferations occurring in the oral cavity and hence needs to be differentiated from them. Very few cases of peripheral odontogenic myxomas have been reported and, to the best of our knowledge, no case has been reported in a pediatric patient. We present an unusual case of peripheral odontogenic myxoma occurring in a 12-year-old girl located in the anterior mandibular gingiva, with an emphasis on differential diagnosis.