1. Terminologies used in
Oral Pathology

2. Terminology/ Nomenclature
Communication
Documentation
Description
Classification/ categorization

3. Types
General terms
Clinical terms
Histologic terms

4. Definition
Maximum expression in minimum words

5. General terms

6. Provisional diagnosis
Diagnosis arrived at after history taking and clinical examination but before any investigations.
Preliminary educated assumption or guess as to the nature or status of the condition prior to the analysis of other diagnostic data

7. Differential diagnosis
Process of identifying a particular disease process by differentiating it from all other pathologic processes that may have similar signs and symptoms or clinical course

8. Final Diagnosis
Diagnosis arrived after all the data (History, clinical examination and investigations ) has been collected, analyzed and subjected to logical thought.

9. Prognosis
Prediction of the course, duration and termination of a disease and the likelihood of its response to treatment

10. Investigations
Steps undertaken to confirm a diagnosis which was established following case history taking and physical examination.

11. Laboratory Investigations
Extension of physical examination in which tissue, blood,urine, saliva or any other specimen is obtained from the patients body and subjected to microscopic, biochemical, microbiological or immunological examination

12. Clinical terms

13. Inspection
Systematic visual assessment of the patient

14. Method of examining with the hands using the sense of touch
Palpation
Method of examining with the hands using the sense of touch

15. Percussion
Technique of striking the tissues with the fingers or an instrument so that the examiner may listen to the resulting sounds or note the response of the patient to such action

16. Auscultation
Technique of listening to sounds produced in the body using a stethoscope.

17. Lesion
Morphologically altered tissue with objective signs of disease

18. Symptom
Any change in the body or its function that is perceptible to the patient and may indicate a disease.
Eg : Pain

19. Sign
Any change in the body or its function that is perceptible to a trained observer and may indicate a specific disease.
Eg : Tenderness

20. Hypersensitivity
Exaggerated response to any stimulus which otherwise would not have caused the same degree of response.

21. Abscess
Acute inflammatory reaction localized within the tissue and associated with tissue destruction and liquefaction as well as pus formation

22. Cellulitis
Acute inflammation which spreads diffusely through the tissue spaces and along tissue planes and usually suppurative in nature.

23. Exudate
It is the edema fluid produced by certain inflammatory reactions having a higher specific gravity
(1.020 or higher) and a higher protein content (1-6 gm/dl)

24. Transudate
It is the edema fluid produced by certain noninflammatory conditions having a low specific gravity and a low protein content

25. Macule Well circumscribed
flat area of altered coloration varying in size from a pinhead to several cms

26. Macule

27. Macule/Patch

28. Papule Small well circumscribed solid,elevated lesion less than
5 mm in diameter

29. Nodule well circumscribed solid,elevated lesion more than
5 mm in diameter

30. Nodule

31. Plaque

32. Vesicle Small well circumscribed fluid filled lesion less than 5 mm
in diameter

33. Bulla well circumscribed fluid filled lesion larger than 5 mm
in diameter

34. Bullae

35. Pustule well circumscribed pus filled lesion smaller than 5 mm
in diameter

36. Erosion Break in the epithelium extending to but
not involving the basal cell layer

37. Erosion

38. Ulcer Break in the continuity of the entire epithelium
with the resultant exposure of the underlying connective tissue

39. Ulcer

40. Sinus
Blind tract which connects a cavity lined by granulation tissue to the epithelial surface

41. Fistula Example: Oro antral fistula
Communication between two epithelium lined surfaces
Example:
Oro antral fistula

42. White lesion
Abnormal area of oral mucosa which appears whiter than the surrounding tissue and is usually slightly raised, roughened or of a different texture than the adjacent normal tissue.

43. Keratotic White Lesion
White lesion of the oral cavity which cannot be removed by rubbing or scraping

44. Non Keratotic White Lesion
White lesion of the oral cavity which can be removed by rubbing or scraping

45. Premalignant lesion Eg: Leukoplakia
Morphologically altered tissue in which cancer is more likely to occur than its apparently normal counterpart
Eg: Leukoplakia

46. Premalignant Condition
Generalized state associated with significantly increased risk of developing cancer
Eg: Iron deficiency anemia

47. Hamartoma Eg: Haemangioma
Tumour like malformation characterized by the presence of particular histologic tissues in improper proportions or distribution with a prominent excess of one type of tissue.
Eg: Haemangioma

48. Teratoma
True neoplasm made up of a number of different types of tissues that are not native to the area in which the tumour occurs.

49. Choristoma Eg: Fordyces granules
Microscopically normal cells present in abnormal location
Eg: Fordyces granules

50. Neoplasm
Abnormal mass of tissue, the growth of which exceeds and is uncoordinated with that of the normal tissue and persists in the same excessive manner even after the cessation of the stimulus that evoked the change

51. Hypertrophy Example: Masseteric hypertrophy
Increase in the size of an organ or tissue due to an increase in the size of the cells
Example: Masseteric hypertrophy

52. Hyperplasia Example: Gingival hyperplasia
Increase in the size of an organ or tissue due to an increase in the number of the cells
Example: Gingival hyperplasia

53. Hypoplasia Example: Enamel hypoplasia
Incomplete development of an organ or tissue
Example: Enamel hypoplasia

54. Aplasia Example: Condylar aplasia
Complete failure of formation of organ/tissue
Example: Condylar aplasia

55. Atrophy Example: Papillary atrophy
Decrease in the size of an organ or tissue after complete formation
Example: Papillary atrophy

56. Pedunculated

57. Pedunculated

58. Sessile

59. Sessile

60. Diffuse

61. Coalescing

62. Exophytic

63. Firm

64. Cheesy

65. Hard

66. Histologic terms

67. Hyperkeratosis
Thickening of the stratum corneum

68. Acanthosis
Thickening /Widening of the stratum spinosum

69. Spongiosis
Intercellular edema

70. Acantholysis
Separation of cells in stratum spinosum resulting in intraepithelial split

71. Dysplasia
Irregular, atypical proliferative changes in the epithelium in response to chronic irritation or inflammation

72. Anaplasia
Reversal of highly differentiated cells into a less differentiated type

73. Metaplasis
Is the reversible replacement of one differentiated cell type with another mature differentiated cell type

74. Metastasis
Metastasis is a complex process that involves the spread of a tumor or cancer to distant parts of the body from its original site

75. Mutation
A relatively permanent change in hereditary material involving either a physical change in chromosome relations or a biochemical change in the codons that make up genes