title: A study of the natural history of oral preleukoplakia.
abstract: A preleukoplakia, conceived as a precursor stage of leukoplakia, is grey or greyish-white area with indistinct borders. The paper describes 659 preleukoplakias detected among 20,358 individuals in two districts in India. In Bhavnagar district 99.5% of the preleukoplakias were among men. 23.5% of the hookli (clay pipe) smokers had preleukoplakias. In Ernakulam district 79.6% of the preleukoplakias were found among men and the mixed habit group of bidi smoking and tobacco chewing had the highest prevalence (6.1%). The preleukoplakias showed a marked tendency to regress; among the bidi smokers in Bhavnagar, 75% regressed. In two patients preleukoplakia turned into carcinoma.
mesh_terms: D000293:Adolescent; D000328:Adult; D000367:Age Factors; D000368:Aged; D005260:Female; D005500:Follow-Up Studies; D006801:Humans; D007194:India; D007972:Leukoplakia, Oral / Q000453:epidemiology* / Q000209:etiology / Q000473:pathology; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D009061:Mouth Mucosa / Q000473:pathology; D009062:Mouth Neoplasms / Q000453:epidemiology*; D010947:Plants, Toxic; D011230:Precancerous Conditions / Q000453:epidemiology / Q000209:etiology; D012737:Sex Factors; D012907:Smoking / Q000150:complications; D014030:Tobacco, Smokeless