The 5-year prevalence of maxillofacial fibro-osseous lesions in Uganda.

BACKGROUND: Fibro-osseous lesions of the jaws are a diagnostic challenge for the pathologist because histologically, they are not easily distinguishable. African data on the prevalence of these lesions are scarce. We present a 5-year report of benign fibro-osseous lesions at Mulago Hospital, Uganda, showing the frequency and distribution of these lesions.

MATERIALS AND METHODS: Confirmed fibro-osseous lesions reports at the pathology department (2007-2012) were retrieved. Patients' clinical data including age, gender, anatomic location, and diagnosis were recorded. Descriptive statistics and simple proportion tests were carried out.

RESULTS: We retrieved 155 confirmed benign fibro-osseous lesions over this period, 65% were females, 34% males, and the gender of one case was not specified. Fibrous dysplasia was the most prevalent lesion (n = 87, 56.1%) followed by ossifying fibroma (n = 50, 32.9%) and osseous dysplasia (n = 17, 10.9%). We neither found craniofacial nor polyostotic fibrous dysplasia. Fibrous dysplasia and ossifying fibroma peaked in the second decade at 40.2% and 40.0%, respectively. Florid osseous dysplasia was commonest in the fifth decade.

CONCLUSION: In this study, all the florid osseous dysplasia were seen among females. We need to carry out prospective studies to establish as to why and what kind of women get afflicted by this lesion.