Prevalence of Oral Inclusion Cysts in a Brazilian Neonatal Population

Purpose: To evaluate oral inclusion cysts in newborns and their association with birth weight, preterm birth, newborn health, maternal health, prenatal factors, and socio-economic factors.
Methods: The sample consisted of 411 pairs of mothers and their newborns born at a university hospital in Brazil. The oral inclusion cysts, diagnosed by clinical examination, were Epstein pearls, Bohn's nodules, and dental lamina cysts. Medical records and a questionnaire were used to collect data related to newborns and mothers. Data were analyzed using the chi-square, linear by linear, and Fisher's exact tests for bivariate analysis, while Poisson regression with robust variance was used for multivariate analysis (α =five percent).
Results: The prevalence of inclusion cysts was 56.7 percent. A total of 42 (62.7 percent) low birth weight (LBW) newborns, 192 (56.0 percent) normal weight newborns, 38 (63.3 percent) preterm newborns, and 187 (56.7 percent) full-term newborn had inclusion cysts. Epstein pearls (n=164, 39.9 percent) were more prevalent and associated with prematurity (P =0.025), LBW newborns (P =0.033), and mothers who worked during pregnancy (P =0.019). Bohn's nodules (n=80, 19.9 percent) were more prevalent in newborns of mothers who did not receive welfare support (P =0.004). Dental lamina cysts occurred in 5.6 percent (N=23) of the sample and were not associated with independent variables.
Conclusion: Epstein pearls were more common in LBW and preterm infants.