Incidence of jaw lesions in 193 patients with multiple myeloma

The incidence of alterations of the maxilla and mandible at radiographic screening was evaluated in 193 patients with multiple myeloma, both at the time of diagnosis and after the start of chemotherapy during the course of the disease. Although the study confirms that osteolytic lesions are more frequent in the mandible than in the maxilla, it showed that their incidence was lower than reported in the past. Furthermore, these lesions were mostly asymptomatic and were observed in patients who had extensive skeletal involvement, particularly at the skull level. These findings indicate that systematic radiologic monitoring of the stomatognathic system should be performed, particularly in patients with multiple myeloma at an advanced stage.