Morphology and Morphometry of the human sublingual glands in mouth floor enlargements of edentulous patients

作者：Rodrigues de Sa Josiane Costa; Tolentino Elen de Souza^*; Azevedo Alanis Luciana Reis; Iwaki Filho Liogi; Lara Vanessa Soares; Damante Jose Humberto

来源：Journal of Applied Oral Science, 2013, 21(6): 540-546.

DOI：10.1590/1679-775720130342

• Salivary glands
• Sublingual gland
• Morphology
• Anatomy

A symptomatic mouth floor enlargements may be observed in edentulous patients. These masses, which protrude from the mouth floor, may complicate the fitting of dentures and require surgery. Whether this "entity" may be considered an anatomical variation of the mouth floor or represent specific alterations in the sublingual gland is not known. Objective: The aim of this work is to investigate the morphological and nnorphometric aspects of the sublingual glands of edentulous patients with mouth floor enlargements and compare the glands of these patients with the sublingual glands of human cadavers. Material and Methods: Microscopic evaluation was performed on human sublingual glands from edentulous patients with mouth floor enlargements (n=20) and edentulous cadavers (n=20). The patients and cadavers were of similar ages. The data were compared using Mann-Whitney U, Fisher's exact and Student's t tests (p<0.05). Results: Acinar atrophy, duct-like structures, mononuclear infiltrates, replacement of parenchyma with fibrous/adipose tissue, mucous extravasation and oncocytosis were similar between the groups (p>0.05). Only the variables "autolysis" and "congested blood vessels" presented statistical difference between groups (p=0.014; p=0.043). The nnorphometric study revealed that the volume densities of acini, ducts, stroma and adipose tissue were similar between the groups (p>0.05). Conclusion: The microscopic characteristics of the sublingual glands in mouth floor enlargements in edentulous patients correspond to characteristics associated with the normal aging process. The glands are not pathological and represent an age-related alteration that occurs with or without the presence of the mouth floor enlargements.

• 出版日期2013-12