The Spectrum of Oral Lesions Presenting Clinically With Papillary-Verrucous Features

We sought to study the spectrum of oral pathologies presenting clinically with papillary-verrucous features.

A 10-year (2007 to 2016) retrospective study of oral papillary lesions was undertaken. All biopsy reports that included a clinical description of papillary or verrucous architecture were retrieved. The data collected included clinical features, size, color, location, histopathologic diagnosis, age, and gender.

The study included 137 patients, with a total of 150 lesions. The ages ranged from 10 weeks to 84 years (mean, 49 years). Histopathologically, 60% of cases were human papillomavirus (HPV) related, 19% showed hyperplasia, 11% had hyperplastic candidiasis, 7% were dysplastic or malignant, and 3% were benign of unknown etiology. Among the 7% of lesions diagnosed with dysplasia or malignancy, only 60% were suspected to have malignancy at the time of biopsy. HPV-related lesions and hyperplasia were most frequently found on the tongue (38% and 41%, respectively) and soft palate (21% and 14%, respectively). Hyperplastic candidiasis was most frequently found on the buccal mucosa and tongue (35% and 24%, respectively). Squamous cell carcinoma was found in 1.3% of total lesions and verrucous carcinoma in 1.3%. Of the verrucous or papillary malignant lesions, 50% were found on the gingiva. Most malignant lesions occurred in the 40- to 60-year age group.

The results of this study suggest that, because of the wide spectrum of entities presenting clinically with a papillary-verrucous architecture, biopsy is necessary for diagnosis. The clinical presentation allowed for overall accurate diagnosis in only 47% of cases and 60% accuracy in dysplastic or malignant cases. It is of considerable importance to correctly identify those lesions that are HPV related but at the same time to rule out those lesions that are unrelated to HPV to help alleviate a patient's anxiety. Most important, biopsy is mandatory for the recognition of malignant lesions with a papillary-verrucous architecture, which may mimic other benign entities in the group of papillary-verrucous lesions.