Chievitz's organ: a potential pitfall in oral cancer diagnosis

It has been reported that epithelial nests associated with sensory nerve fibers may simulate perineural invasion and pose a potential diagnostic problem for surgical pathologists working on frozen tissue specimens from patients with oral cancer. The epithelial structures are not neoplastic, and no known pathologic condition has been associated with them. They are believed to be those structures described scantily in the English literature as Chievitz's organ. The fact that the epithelial nests lie near the plane of injection for the inferior alveolar nerve should be of special interest to dentists, especially oral surgeons and pathologists. Controversy exists as to the exact nature of Chievitz's organ, but the potential hazard of misdiagnosis exists nonetheless. This study of cadaver and autopsy material reaffirms the existence of the epithelial rests and outlines a simple technique for locating them.