Paediatric oral surgery: endoscopic approach in ameloblastic fibroma management. A preliminary report

Ameloblastic fibroma (AF) is a rare benign odontogenic tumor of slow-growing behaviour characterised by proliferation of both epithelial and mesenchymal odontogenic tissues. Treatment of AF is usually conservative by means of enucleation, curettage and long term follow-up.

This report describes a case of AF in a 12-year-old boy. Examination of the oral cavity revealed absence of tooth 3.7 and mild swelling in the same mandibular area. Orthopantomography and Cone Beam Computed Tomography (CBCT) showed a wide multilocular radiolucent lesion at the left mandibular angle, extending from the first molar to the lower part of the mandibular branch; agenesis of tooth 3.7 and displacement of tooth 3.8. Surgical excision was performed under general anaesthesia. A fiberscope was used to perform a more conservative bone removal and extraction of tooth 3.8. Furthermore, an accurate curettage of the bone site was performed. The histological investigation showed an AF pattern: an epithelial cell component arranged in nests and tubules immersed in a stroma of low differentiated mesenchymal tissue. No sign of recurrence has been observed during the 6-month follow-up period.

Although AF is a rare tumor, it is more prevalent in children's jaw. A new intra-operative visual technique could provide a conservative treatment by minimising bone deformities and permitting an accurate bone curettage.