Pattern of occurrence, clinical presentation and management of oral and maxillofacial vascular lesions at Muhimbili National Hospital

Abstract

Background: Vascular lesions are anomalies of vascular development and endothelial cell hyperplasia. They are best diagnosed through history and clinical examination. These lesions present with physical and psychological implications to the patients particularly if visibly disfiguring. Magnitude of these vascular lesions is not known in Tanzania likewise the demographic distribution. Treatment of these lesions is difficult due to lack of expertise and modern medical facilities, and this has led to an increased burden of untreated patients in Tanzania. Overall objective: To determine pattern of occurrence, clinical presentation and management of oral and maxillofacial vascular lesions at Muhimbili National Hospital. Methodology: This was a descriptive prospective cross-sectional hospital-based study that was conducted at the departments of Oral and Maxillofacial Surgery, Pediatrics, Oncology, and Ear Nose and Throat (ENT).All patients with oral and maxillofacial vascular lesions were interviewed using specially designed structured questionnaires and clinical examination forms. The interview enquired about socio-demographic information, site where vascular lesion was, when it was noticed, treatment before and current complaints. Later, the patients were clinically examined whereby the details of the examination included clinical presentation, type and site of the lesion. Radiological evaluation of some cases with extensive lesions included CT scan, CT angiography, MRI, MR angiography and Doppler ultrasound. Data collected were recorded in special clinical forms, checked for completeness and clarity, coded and later were entered into the computer for analysis using SPSS version 20. Descriptive analysis involved computation of percentages, frequency of occurrence, mean and cross tabulations of variables of interest. Inferential analysis included computation of Chi-Square test to compare proportion for possible association. A p-value of