Mucocele : A Case Report

Mucocele is a common salivary gland disorder that can appear in the lacrimal sac, paranasal sinuses, oral cavity, appendix, or gall bladder. These lesions occur due to mucous accumulation resulting from the alteration of minor salivary glands. Lower lip is the most common site of occurrence of these lesions in the oral cavity and most probable cause is trauma or habit of lip biting. Mucocele is defined as a mucus-filled cyst that may appear in the oral cavity, appendix, gall bladder, paranasal sinuses, or lacrimal sac. Two types of mucocele can appear in the oral cavity, namely, extravasation and retention type. In children, extravasation mucoceles are common and retention type of mucoceles are very rarely found. Extravasation mucocele results from a broken salivary gland duct causing spillage into the soft tissues around the gland. These extravasation mucoceles undergo three evolutionary phases. In the first phase, mucus spills diffusely from the excretory duct into the connective tissues. In the next phase, i.e., resorption phase, because of foreign body reaction, formation of granuloma occurs. In the final phase, there is formation of pseudocapsule (without epithelial lining) around the mucosa. Blockage of the salivary gland ducts causing decrease or absence of glandular secretion causes retention mucocele