Radiological Aspects of Lymphomas and Leukaemias Affecting The Jaws - A Systematic Review.

BACKGROUND: This systematic review aimed to investigate the radiological features of lymphomas and leukaemias affecting the jaws.

METHODS: A systematic literature review was conducted using the electronic databases of PubMed, Web of Science and Scopus. Articles that contained sufficient radiographic examinations (periapical, panoramic or computed tomography (CT) images) for individual cases were included. Additionally, either immunohistochemical or molecular confirmation was required prior to inclusion. Three authors evaluated and described the image quality and radiological features.

RESULTS: From an initial 1079 articles screened, 129 cases were included, containing 88 tomographic, 76 panoramic and 26 periapical examinations. The quality of the majority of images was sufficient for evaluation. Diffuse large B-cell lymphomas (DLBCL), Burkitt lymphoma, leukemic infiltration, plasmablastic lymphoma and extranodal NK/T-cell lymphoma, nasal type (ENKTL, NT) were the most common subtypes. Involved teeth presented with mobility in 37.2% of the cases and a provisional diagnosis of inflammatory/infectious dental disease was considered in 49.2% of cases. CT exams were available for 76% of the cases, with most presented with an osteolytic lesion with ill-defined borders. Periosteal reactions were uncommon.

CONCLUSION: Lymphoma/leukaemia infiltrates of the jaw bones are usually of high-grade subtypes and rarely present with periosteal reactions. This article is protected by copyright. All rights reserved.