Physiology & Biochemistry · patient case question
Cherubism is best classified as which type of condition?
Patient case: Syndromes recognised at the chair
demo: Paediatric and young adult clinic
chief: Several patients whose facial and dental features point to a recognisable syndrome.
history: One child has bilateral painless expansion of the mandibular angles with an upward gaze, and a father with the same childhood history. Another has downslanting palpebral fissures, malar hypoplasia and malformed external ears. A third has notched, screwdriver-shaped permanent incisors and multicusped first molars. A fourth has a smooth philtrum, a thin upper lip and short palpebral fissures.
meds: None.
findings: Not applicable.
Show answer and explanation
Correct answer: B. Hereditary and developmental
- A. Reactive lesions such as the central giant cell granuloma respond to a local stimulus. Cherubism is genetically determined and bilateral from the outset, which reactive lesions are not.
- B. Correct. Cherubism is a hereditary developmental condition, driven by a germline mutation and expressed during jaw development. Its self-limiting course, with regression after puberty, is characteristic of a developmental rather than a neoplastic process.
- C. There is no infectious agent involved.
- D. It is not a neoplasm. There is no autonomous clonal proliferation, and the lesions regress spontaneously.
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