Odontogenic tumors in Port Harcourt: South-South geopolitical zone of Nigeria.

AIM: A retrospective study of odontogenic tumors (OTs) in Port Harcourt was undertaken to establish its prevalence and compare with known data in the literature from Nigeria and elsewhere.

MATERIALS AND METHODS: All pathologically diagnosed OTs between 2008 and 2013 at the archives of the Department of Oral Pathology and Oral Biology of the University of Port Harcourt/University of Port Harcourt Teaching Hospital were retrospectively studied and classified according to the 2005 WHO classification of OTs and allied diseases. These were recorded into a computer and analyzed using Statistical Package for Social Sciences (SPSS 21.0, Inc., Chicago, IL, USA).

RESULTS: A total of sixty-three cases of OTs were recorded for the period under review. Fifty-two of these were cases of ameloblastoma (82.54%). This was followed by adenomatoid odontogenic tumour (AOT) 4 (6.35%) and odontogenic myxoma 3 (4.76%). Most lesions were seen within the second to fourth decades of life and mandible was most frequently affected.

CONCLUSION: It is concluded that the pattern of occurrence of OTs in Port Harcourt followed a general pattern in Nigeria and other African countries but slightly differs from findings from other parts of the world.