Giant cell granuloma: a cross- sectional study in oral and maxillofacial pathology department of dental faculty of Tehran University of Medical Sciences (1986-2000)

Statement of Problem: Giant cell granuloma (G.C.G) is a reactive lesion which affects the jaws and oral mucosa of gingiva.This lesion is classified to central and peripheral ones. The histopathologic aspects of central and peripheral G.C.G is the same. The central lesions are aggressive and cause osseous destruction. The peripheral G.C.G produces ulcerative swellings similar to pyogenic granuloma or peripheral ossifying fibroma. Since the peripheral and central G.C.G are common lesions, the awareness of dentists of different aspect of G.C.G is very important. The aim of this study was a statistical evaluation of variables such as age, gender and location of peripheral and central G.C.G in oral and maxillofacial pathology department of Dental Faculty of Tehran University of Medical Sciences. This study was a cross-sectional, case series one. The medical records of oral and maxillofacial pathology department of Dental Faculty of Tehran University of Medical Sciences was assessed in two steps: In the first stage, the medical records of patients with pathologic report of peripheral and central G.C.G were selected and reviewed. In the next step, the informations such as age, gender and location of peripheral and central G.C.G were registered in data forms. The obtained data were analyzed by SPSS statistical software. The results showed that the age range in peripheral and central G.C.G were 2- 90 and 4-70 years, respectively. The peak incidence of peripheral and central G.C.G was in the third and second decades, respectively. The peripheral G.C.G was more common in men (52.70%) than women (47.30%). This finding in central G.C.G was 37.19% for men and 62.88% for women. 57.06% of peripheral G.C.G cases were in mandible and 42.94% in maxilla. The occurrence of central G.C.G was 67.07% in mandible and 32.93 % in maxilla. Based on this study, the peripheral lesions were more frequent in men, third decade and mandible and the central lesions in women, second decade and mandible.