Small Animal Review

Tumours in the oral cavity are not uncommon; these are sometimes non-neoplastic lesions such as cysts, which can be large enough to interfere with mastication and the symmetry of the dental arcades. The types of odontogenic cysts include lateral periodontal cysts, radicular (periapical) cysts, dentigerous (follicular) cysts and canine odontogenic parakeratinised cyst. They are considered to be developmental lesions relating to failure of odontogenesis (e.g. dentigerous cysts), reactive hyperplasia of odontogenic epithelium or cell rests (e.g. radicular cysts) or proliferative lesions with a cystic component.

Distinguishing cysts from neoplastic processes relies on clinical findings, radiography and histopathology. In humans, a new odontogenic cyst, named variably as an inflammatory collateral cyst, paradental inflammatory cyst, or buccal bifurcation cyst, is linked to inflammation in the furcation region of a mandibular M1, M2 or M3. Similar cysts that do not match the description of currently recognised canine odontogenic cysts have been described by Soukup and Bell (2020).