Botryoid odontogenic cyst: clinicopathologic analysis of ten cases with three recurrences

The botryoid odontogenic cyst (BOC) is a rare cyst of odontogenic origin originally described in 1973 by Weathers and Waldron as a variant of the lateral periodontal cyst. Ten examples of this rare lesion were studied by light and electron microscopy and the clinical and radiographic findings were analyzed. Eight of ten lesions were located in the mandible; the anterior mandible being the dominant site. Five of the ten lesions were unilocular, the largest measuring 4.5 X 1.2 cm. Only two of the ten botryoid odontogenic cysts were radiographically multilocular. Three lesions represented recurrences 8, 10, and 10 years after previous surgical intervention. All patients were white with an average age of 46 years. Perhaps the most significant information gained from this investigation of botryoid odontogenic cysts is the fact three of ten lesions recurred after initial surgical removal. It is important that practitioners take note of the fact that: 1) a recurrence potential may exist for the botryoid odontogenic cyst that has gone unrecognized, 2) recurrence may not occur until a decade after initial surgery, and 3) lesions may occasionally become destructive.