Overview on Disorders of Oral Pigmentation

Abstract

Oral pigmentation is a very frequent disorder that can affect any area of the mouth. Oral pigmentation can be a symptom of a physiologic or pathologic condition. There are a variety of reasons, ranging from basic iatrogenic processes like dental amalgam implantation to sophisticated medical illnesses like Peutz-Jeghers syndrome (PJS) and Addison disease. pathologic pigmentation can be classed as exogenous or endogenous. Drugs, tobacco/smoking, amalgam tattoos, or heavy metals can all cause exogenous pigmentation. Endogenous pigmentation is linked to endocrine abnormalities, syndromes, infections, chronic irritation, and reactive or neoplastic conditions. For any oral pigmented lesion that is not easily identified, clinicians must physically evaluate the oral cavity, gather clinical histories, and be willing to do a biopsy. Management depends on the causing factor of the oral pigmentation disorder and thus multiple approaches can be considered. The decisive therapy for early-stage melanoma is surgery, such as broad local excision with sentinel lymph node biopsies, elective node dissection, or both.