Xanthoma is a benign tumor consisting of accumulations of lipid-laden histiocytes associated with fibrous connective tissue. The large spherical tumor cells containing lipids are called foam cells. Xanthoma usually arises in the soft tissue including the skin, tendon sheath, and eyelid. However, xanthoma in the jaw bones is rare. We report a case of xanthoma occurring in the maxilla of a 66-year-old woman.
The patient consulted a dental clinic because of spontaneous pain in the left side of the nose. Since an X-ray film demonstrated a cystic lesion in the left incisor region of the maxilla, the patient was referred to our hospital. Panoramic tomography and computed tomography also revealed a cystic lesion in the same area. The clinical diagnosis was an incisive canal cyst. Under general anesthesia, the lesion was extirpated. The removed lesion was a yellowish, elastic-soft mass adhering to the periosteum. Histologically, the lesion consisted of accumulations of foam cells without atypia, scattered foreign body giant cells, and fibrous connective tissue. The pathological diagnosis of the lesion was xanthoma. There was no evidence of recurrence 23 months after surgery.
