Fibrous dysplasia of the maxillofacial bones. Clinical considerations

OBJECTIVE: After a wide survey of the literature, the results of a clinical-statistic study carried out on twelve cases of maxillo-facial bones fibrous dysplasia, diagnosed and treated at the Oral and Maxillo-Facial Surgery Department of the II University of Naples, are reported. EXPERIMENTAL ASSAY: Retrospective study. MATERIALS AND METHODS: All the patients examined showed fibro-osseus lesions involving the mandible in eight cases, the maxilla in three cases and the frontal bone in one case. Seven patients were females and five males, aged between nine and seventy-two years. The surgical treatment was carried out on eleven patients: four cases were treated by complete surgical excision of the fibro-osseous lesions and seven cases by a conservative removal of the portion of the lesion contributing to the bone deformity. RESULTS AND CONCLUSIONS: All cases examined involved maxillo-facial skeleton structures as a sole localization, confirming that the polyostotic forms are more infrequent than the maxillary monostotic ones. The distribution of the cases according to age classes and lesion localization showed a higher incidence of fibrous dysplasia in the third decade of life and a clear predilection for the mandible. The observation of active lesions in old age shows that the disease may evolve also after the growth. The cases treated by radical excision of the lesions have not been followed from relapse; on the contrary three of the seven cases treated by conservative excision relapsed after a few years.