Oral cavity & oropharynx
Potentially malignant & dysplasia
Oral submucosal fibrosis
Author: Charu Thakral, M.D.
Last author update: 1 March 2013
Last staff update: 27 October 2023
Copyright: 2002-2025, PathologyOutlines.com, Inc.
PubMed Search: Oral submucosal fibrosis
Table of Contents
Definition / general | Sites | Case reports | Treatment | Clinical images | Microscopic (histologic) description | Microscopic (histologic) images | Differential diagnosisCite this page: Thakral C. Oral submucosal fibrosis. PathologyOutlines.com website. https://www.pathologyoutlines.com/topic/oralcavityoralsubmucosalfibrosis.html. Accessed January 6th, 2025.
Definition / general
- Mainly in India and Pakistan due to smokeless tobacco / chewing of betel quid
- Reactive but risk factor for squamous cell carcinoma
- Early lesions show blanching, mottled, marble-like appearance; later fibrous bands lead to stiffness, restricting ability to open mouth (trismus)
Sites
- Buccal mucosa, lips, retromolar areas, soft palate
Case reports
- 10 year old boy and 12 year old girl (J Indian Soc Pedod Prev Dent 2012;30:85)
- 38 year old man with successful reconstruction using skin graft in buccal mucosa (Case Rep Dent 2012;2012:628301)
Treatment
- None, irreversible once it develops
- Cessation of quid chewing reduces risk of oral cancer but fibrosis is not altered
Clinical images
Images hosted on other servers:
Blanching and fibrosis
With verrucous leukoplakia
38 year old man:
preoperative, after suturing graft and 1 year followup
10 year old boy:
difficulty in mouth opening
12 year old girl:
shrunken uvula, pretreatment and posttreatment
Microscopic (histologic) description
- Subepithelial fibrosis, chronic inflammation, often with eosinophils, hyalinization and loss of vascularity
- Overlying epithelium is atrophic or hyperplastic and hyperkeratotic
Microscopic (histologic) images
Images hosted on other servers:
Dense fibrosis
Advanced
Differential diagnosis
- Amyloidosis
