Traumatic oral lesions: Pictorial essay

Oral mucosal lesions are a common occurrence and very often dentists are called on to see such patients. Among many causes, trauma is one of the leading for oral mucosal diseases. Oral traumatic lesions are diverse in which some present as acute lesions while the majority are chronic lesions. Clinical presentation of traumatic lesions varies significantly and most of the occasions, the cause and the effect can be established with thorough history and clinical examination. Although biopsy of such lesions is not required in most of the occasions, some may warrant histological investigations to exclude conditions which clinically mimic traumatic lesions. This paper provides an overview of common and some rare traumatic conditions of the oral mucosa