Essentials of Oral Pathology

Oral pathology is refers to the diseases of the mouth ("e;oral cavity"e;or"e;stoma"e;), jaws ("e;maxillae"e;or"e;gnath"e;)and related structures such as salivary glands, temporomandibular joints, facial muscles and perioralskin (the skin around the mouth). The mouth is an important organ with many different functions. It isalso prone to a variety of medical and dental disorders. The specialty oral and maxillofacial pathology isconcerned with diagnosis and study of the causes and effects of diseases affecting the oral andmaxillofacial region. It is sometimes considered to be a specialty of dentistry and pathology. Sometimesthe term head and neck pathology is used instead, but this might imply that the pathologist deals withotorhinolaryngologic disorders (i.e. ear, nose and throat) in addition to maxillofacial disorders. In thisrole there is some overlap between the expertise of head and neck pathologists and that of endocrinepathologists. It covers a wide range of topics, such as orofacial pain syndromes, common tooth- andgum-related diseases, oral mucosal white patches, blisters, ulcers, wart-like lesions and soft tissue lumpsand swellings.