[A primary odontogenic cyst of the jaws (keratocyst)]

Forty-six patients (21 men and 25 women) with keratocysts were treated at Dental Surgery Chair of the Moscow Medical Stomatological Institute. Cystectomy was carried out in 26 patients, two-staged treatment in 20. Histologic examination of the operative material confirmed the diagnosis. A two-staged method of treatment of this disease in an outpatient setting has been developed. Cystectomy was carried out in cases with cysts up to 2-3 cm in diameter, it did not destroy the cortical plate of the jaw; it was performed similarly as total biopsy and was the final treatment modality. In cases with larger cysts, when the thickness of the cortical layer was less than 0.5 cm and there was a risk of fracture, two-staged treatment was resorted to: the first step, decompression performed similarly as cystostomy and the second, cystectomy a year or more after the first stage, when the size of the cyst reduced to 1.5-2 cm in diameter. The patients were followed up for up to 2-5 years after the treatment. Hence, correct and timely diagnosis of the disease and a two-staged method of treatment of keratocysts developed at out Chair bring about good results with the least injury to the patients.