Early recurrence of mandibular torus following surgical resection: A case report

Tori are benign bony outgrowths that occur in different locations along the mandible and maxilla. Their origin is still uncertain; however, various hypotheses have been put forward, including male gender or mechanical overload. Recurrence of a torus after surgical resection is rarely described, and even less rapidly after a procedure.

We present here the case of a 52-year-old patient who presented voluminous mandibular tori on the lingual side. The tori recurred very rapidly after the first resection surgery and with the same initial volume. Pathological examinations confirmed the histological type. The identified risk factors were excessive fish consumption, occlusal overload factors, and male gender. The patient then underwent a second surgery associated with a mouth guard in order to treat bruxism. There was no recurrence after one year of follow-up.

This case report highlights the fact that there is still a lack of understanding of the risk factors associated with torus. However, several studies have been able to understand certain genetic or dietary mechanisms in the genesis of these exostoses.

This case emphasizes the importance of mechanical overload in the recurrence of exostoses, which, coupled with dietary, gender, and ethnic factors, may be responsible for recurrence in this patient. The detection of factors associated with the risk of recurrence is a major challenge.