We examined the clinical and pathological features in 20 patients of pyogenic granuloma on the tongue who were treated in the Department of Oral Surgery, Faculty of Medicine, Yokohama City University Hospital.
Clinical features: The site of occurrence was most frequent in the dorsum and apex, which accounted for 85% of the lesions. A history of trauma was noted in 6 cases (30%), all of which had pyogenic granuloma arisen from the apex and tongue margin. The duration from the first episode to the time of admission was about 2.2 months on the average. Two cases (10%) showed one recurrence.
Pathological features: The superficial layer of pyogenic granuloma was ulcerative with predominant inflammatory changes such as dilation of capillaries, cellular infiltration and granulaiton. On the other hand, in the deeper region located in the lower stalk where almost no cellular infiltration was observed, a dense colony of capillaries and endothelial cells was separated by the connective tissue and arranged in a small leaf-like fashion, providing a finding suggestive of tumorous lesion. In a part between them, a mild cellular infiltration was observed, which seemed to be a transitional part from the deep tumorous lesion to the superficial glanulomatous lesion.
Watching the relationship of the degree of inflammation to the tumorous lesion, we concluded that pyogenic granuloma on the tongue was of capillary hemangioma accompanying granulation secondarily caused by trauma or infection.
