19-year Audit of BenignJaw Tumours and Tumour-like Lesions in a Teaching Hospital in Nairobi, Kenya

Abstract

Background: The diversity of benign jaw tumours may cause difficulty in a correct diagnosis and insti-tution of an appropriate treatment. Data on the prevalence of these tumours is scarce from the Afri-can continent. We present a 19-year audit of benign jaw tumours and tumour-like lesions at a University teaching hospital in Nairobi, Kenya. Methods: Histo-pathological records were retrieved and re-examined from the Department of Oral and Maxillofacial pa-thology, University of Nairobi from 1992 to 2011. The jaw tumours were classified according to the latest WHO classification. Results: During the 19-year audit, 4257 biopsies were processed of which 597 (14.02%) were jaw tumours within an age range of between 4 to 86 years. There was greater number of odontogenic tumours 417 (69.85%) than the bone related lesions 180 (30.15%). Of the odontogenic tumours, the epithet- lial and in the bone related types, the fibro-osseous lesions were frequent. Conclusion: Ameloblastoma and ossifying fibroma were the most frequent tumours reported in this audit. The information regarding the prevalence of these tumours is scarce from the conti-nent and can be useful in early detection and man-agement before they cause facial deformity.