Surgical ciliated cysts of the mandible: A systematic review of case reports.

BACKGROUND: Surgical ciliated cysts occur mainly in the maxillae after radical maxillary sinus surgery; they rarely develop in the mandible. This study aims to gather information on all the characteristics of patients suffering from mandibular surgical ciliated cysts. This article also reports two new cases.

METHODS: PubMed, Google Scholar and the International Clinical Trials Registry Platform were explored until 13 December 2022 for articles regarding mandibular surgical ciliated cysts. Maxillary ciliated cysts were excluded.

RESULTS: Fourteen original articles were included in a total of 16 cases. Maxillofacial surgeries are the first aetiology (94.4%). Surgical ciliated cysts of the mandibular region show a 1.25:1 male-to-female ratio with a protracted time to diagnosis (range: 2-56 years). Most patients are symptomatic (77.8%). Typically, radiology shows a radiolucency lesion (88.9%) and histology describes pseudostratified ciliated columnar epithelium. Enucleation has always been described as the treatment.

DISCUSSION: All results were case reports, thus a low level of evidence studies. Mandibular surgical ciliated cysts should be considered in patients presenting a mandibular swelling or radiolucency lesion with a maxillofacial surgery history. Meticulous surgical techniques can aid in the prevention of this lesion.