Diagnosis and Management of Upper Lip Sialolithiasis Identified via Conventional Dental Radiography: A Case Report

Sialolithiasis of the minor salivary glands is a rare clinical entity that is seldom detected through preoperative imaging. Due to its nonspecific clinical presentation, it is frequently misdiagnosed as mucocele, fibroma, or minor salivary gland tumor; consequently, most cases are identified only through postoperative histopathological examination. We report a rare case of sialolithiasis in a minor salivary gland of the upper lip in a 73-year-old male patient. Despite the lesion's small size, a history of suppuration prompted radiographic investigation. A standard dental radiograph identified a 0.5-mm radio-opaque entity, enabling an accurate preoperative diagnosis. This case underscores that dental radiography remains a simple, cost-effective, and highly efficient screening tool for differentiating sialolithiasis from other soft-tissue lesions in the lip.