Comparative study of odontogenic epithelium frequency in connective tissue of dentigerous cysts and odontogenic keratocysts

Epithelial odontogenic cysts and tumors originate from the odontogenic epithelium and superficial epithelial lining of the oral mucosa. Differences in the proliferation of epithelial cell islands play an important role in the pathogenesis of these lesions. The aim of this study was to compare the frequency of odontogenic epithelium in the connective tissue of dentigerous cysts and odontogenic keratocysts from registered samples of oral pathology archive, dental dental faculty Isfahan University of Medical Sciences.

In this cross-sectional descriptive study, 30 odontogenic keratocysts and 30 dentigerous cysts prepared by excisional biopsy were selected and clinical information including age, sex and location was obtained from the archives of patients referred to the Oral and Maxillofacial Pathology Department of Isfahan Dental School. Histopathological slides were examined by two pathologists to confirm the diagnosis and evaluation of odontogenic epithelial islands and cords in the connective tissue of the lesions. The data were entered into SPSS23 software and statistically analyzed by Fisherchr('39')s exact test, Mann-Whitney, Kruskal-Wallis and T-test.

The number of specimens with large and small epithelial islands and epithelial cords was significantly higher in odontogenic keratocysts than dentigerous cysts (p-value = 0.014). There was no significant difference between the mean number of large and small epithelial islands and cords in connective tissue based on gender and location in each group (p-value >0.05). There was a significant inverse relationship between the mean number of large and small islands of odontogenic epithelium and epithelial cords in the connective tissue of the two lesions with the mean age of patients (p-value = 0.035).

It seems that the samples with large and small epithelial islands and epithelial cords were significantly higher in OKCs than dentigerous cysts and this difference may play a role in the different  biological behavior and recurrence of these two lesions.