title: Diagnosing and treating common oral pathologies.
abstract: When the physician is confronted with an oral pathologic condition in a child, the adage "common things happen commonly" should be applied. Congenital lesions such as palatal and alveolar cysts occur in almost 50% of newborns. Developmental conditions such as Fordyce granules and retrocuspid papillae are found in most children. Localized soft-tissue enlargements commonly seen in young children include the parulis, mucocele, papilloma, and inflammatory gingival tumors. In addition, soft-tissue pathologies and discomfort associated with herpesvirus infections or recurrent aphthous ulcerations often present as a chief complaint. The physician's knowledge and treatment recommendations for common oral pathologies should be an integral component to the overall medical management of infants, children, and adolescents.
authors.affiliation: Department of Pediatric Dentistry, University of North Carolina, Chapel Hill.
authors.forename: D C
authors.initials: DC
authors.lastname: Dilley
authors.forename: M A
authors.initials: MA
authors.lastname: Siegel
authors.forename: S
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Budnick
mesh_terms: D000293:Adolescent; D002648:Child; D002657:Child Development; D006801:Humans; D007223:Infant; D009055:Mouth / Q000293:injuries*; D009059:Mouth Diseases / Q000175:diagnosis* / Q000628:therapy; D009062:Mouth Neoplasms / Q000175:diagnosis / Q000628:therapy; D009807:Odontogenic Cysts / Q000175:diagnosis / Q000628:therapy; D010372:Pediatrics; D014777:Virus Diseases / Q000175:diagnosis* / Q000628:therapy