An elderly with a ‘bony’ smile

Abstract

A 62-year-old Caucasian man presented with progressive painless loss of the upper dentition and discolouration of the upper gums. He was referred by a dentist after undergoing dental treatment with debridement twice before his presentation to the otolaryngology department. He had a long history of hypertension and was diagnosed with osteoporosis 3 years ago. He was on regular antihypertensive medication and had been taking oral bisphosphonate for more than 2 years for osteoporosis. He denied steroid use in any form. No history of malignancy, radiation to the head and neck region or pre-existing dental or oral cavity issues was found. He was a smoker of 30 pack-years and an occasional alcohol user.

Keywords

• Osteonecrosis
• maxilla
• biphosphonate