Melkersson-Rosenthal syndrome (MRS) is a rare neuro-muco-cutaneous syndrome, which is characterized by recurrent orofacial swelling, recurrent facial paralysis and fissured tongue. It has a high prevalence in young adults. Up to now, the etiology of MRS is still not clear, it may related to infection, immune deficiency and hereditary factors. The pharmacological therapy and surgery are the main treatment. Corticosteroids seems to be the drug of choice for MRS patient, but the specific dosage and therapeutic effect have not yet been determined. Surgeries of lips provide excellent results in persistentlip edema MRS cases. This article reviews the research progress on MRS, focusing on its epidemiology, etiology, histopathological characteristics, clinical manifestations, classification, diagnostic criteria, differential diagnosis and treatment, to provide information for its early diagnosis and appropriate treatment.
Adrenal Cortex Hormones ; Diagnosis, Differential ; Humans ; Lip ; Melkersson-Rosenthal Syndrome/drug therapy* ; Skin ; Young Adult

Oral lichen planus (OLP) is a chronic inflammatory disease occurring in the oral mucosa. Clinically, OLP presents with various lesion morphologies, attributed to differences in host immune responses. T-helper 17 cells (Th17) are a crucial component of the cellular immune response, primarily functioning through the secretion of interleukin 17 (IL-17). IL-17 plays a dual role in the oral mucosa: on one hand, it exerts a protective effect by promoting the recruitment of neutrophils driven by chemokines, enhancing the secretion of antimicrobial peptides, and strengthening the mucosal barrier; on the other hand, it binds to target cells in the mucosal tissue, activating downstream inflammatory signaling pathways such as nuclear factor kappa-B(NF-κB) and mitogen-activated protein kinase(MAPK), thereby initiating a pro-inflammatory cascade. This process increases the secretion of pro-inflammatory factors and promotes the recruitment and activation of immune cells, exacerbating inflammation. Current research extensively explores the correlation between the Th17/IL-17 axis and the pathogenesis and progression of OLP. This paper aims to review these developments to provide a research foundation for further elucidating the immunological mechanisms of OLP. Literature review results indicate that upregulation of Th17 and IL-17 in local lesion tissues and peripheral blood of OLP patients may be a key molecular event in the development of OLP. Compared to non-erosive OLP, higher expression levels of Th17 and IL-17 in the tissues and blood of patients with erosive OLP suggest a positive correlation between Th17/IL-17 and disease severity. Clinical studies demonstrate that targeted drugs against the Th17/IL-17 axis, by directly blocking IL-17 or inhibiting the production of Th17 cells, can effectively improve mucosal damage in OLP patients, showcasing potential as a new target for immune therapy. However, whether Th17 and IL-17 influence the pathogenesis of OLP by regulating the oral microbiome remains unclear. In summary, the Th17/IL-17 axis holds potential value as a new target for the immune therapy of OLP, warranting further in-depth research into its biological functions and signaling mechanisms within the inflammatory process of OLP.

Oral lichen planus (OLP) is a common oral mucosal disease. The etiology of OLP is not clear. The treatment of OLP is difficult as some of the OLP patients have little effects to the conventional mucosal treatments. In recent years, laser therapy has been adopted to treat patients with OLP. The CO₂ laser therapy has drawn much attention of doctors and scholars because of its advantages in treating the OLP. This review article mainly discusses the principle, effects and some state-of-the-art progresses in OLP treatment using CO₂ laser.

: To evaluate the application of medical magnifying loupes in diagnosis of oral mucosal diseases. Twenty-four patients with plaque-type oral lichen planus or homogeneous oral leukoplakia were inspected by naked eyes or assistance with magnifying loupes. Histopathological results were used as the gold standard to evaluate the sensitivity, specificity and accuracy of the two methods in clinical diagnosis. Questionnaires were used to evaluate the subjective effect of magnifying loupes on the diagnosis efficiency of oral mucosal diseases and to explore the most suitable parameters for application. The sensitivity, specificity and accuracy of medical magnifying loupes for the identification of plaque-type oral lichen planus and homogeneous oral leukoplakia were 94.74%, 100.00% and 95.83%, respectively, which were significantly higher than those of naked eye inspection (89.47%, 80.00% and 87.50%). The effective rate of magnifying loupes assisted diagnosis was 91.76% according to physicians' subjective evaluation. The most suitable parameters were 3.5 times magnification and working distance. The medical magnifying loupes can effectively improve the efficiency of the inspection and diagnosis of oral mucosal diseases, and have the characteristics of convenience and real-time. The recommended clinical parameters are 3.5 times magnification and working distance.
Efficiency ; Humans ; Lenses ; Surveys and Questionnaires

In order to improve the scientific research ability of the postgraduates of Oral Medicine, based on the characteristics of this discipline, our team has adopted a teamwork-based, interest-driven, clinical work and scientific research combined, multiple disciplines interacted pattern of scientific research training of postgraduates. After several years of practice, some achievements have been made in promoting the scientific literacy and ability of independently undertaking clinical practice and scientific research of Oral Medicine, and the average number of publication of postgraduates increased annually. During the university, doctoral students published 2.4 papers in average, and master students published 1.9 papers in average.

Bitter taste in the mouth is a prevalent clinical symptom that refers to a spontaneous bitterness in the mouth after excluding external factors such as diet,and belongs to the phantogeusia of dysgeusia.The etiology and mechanism of bitter taste in the mouth re-main unclear.Studies have shown that bitter taste in the mouth is mainly associated with multiple factors such as diseases,medications and nutrition.In addition,effective and reliable treatments have also not yet been developed.This paper reviews the latest research ad-vances in the etiology,mechanism and treatment of bitter taste in the mouth,with the aim of providing reference for the clinical man-agement of patients with mouth bitterness.

Aging of craniofacial skeleton significantly impairs the repair and regeneration of trauma-induced bony defects, and complicates dental treatment outcomes. Age-related alveolar bone loss could be attributed to decreased progenitor pool through senescence, imbalance in bone metabolism and bone-fat ratio. Mesenchymal stem cells isolated from oral bones (OMSCs) have distinct lineage propensities and characteristics compared to MSCs from long bones, and are more suited for craniofacial regeneration. However, the effect of epigenetic modifications regulating OMSC differentiation and senescence in aging has not yet been investigated. In this study, we found that the histone demethylase KDM4B plays an essential role in regulating the osteogenesis of OMSCs and oral bone aging. Loss of KDM4B in OMSCs leads to inhibition of osteogenesis. Moreover, KDM4B loss promoted adipogenesis and OMSC senescence which further impairs bone-fat balance in the mandible. Together, our data suggest that KDM4B may underpin the molecular mechanisms of OMSC fate determination and alveolar bone homeostasis in skeletal aging, and present as a promising therapeutic target for addressing craniofacial skeletal defects associated with age-related deteriorations.
Aging ; Cell Differentiation ; Facial Bones/physiology* ; Humans ; Jumonji Domain-Containing Histone Demethylases/genetics* ; Mesenchymal Stem Cells/cytology* ; Osteogenesis ; Osteoporosis

With recent developments in photosensitizers and light delivery systems, topical 5-aminolevulinic acid-mediated photodynamic therapy (ALA-PDT) has become the fourth alternative therapeutic approach in the management of oral leucoplakia (OLK) due to its minimally invasive nature, efficacy, and low risk of systemic side effects and disfigurement. This report presents step-by-step guidelines for applying topical ALA-PDT in the management of OLK based on both the clinical experience of the authors and a systematic review of the current literature. Studies using protocols with standardized parameters and randomized clinical trials at multiple centres with adequate sample sizes and both interim and long-term follow-ups are needed before universally applicable guidelines can be produced in this field.
Aminolevulinic Acid ; administration & dosage ; therapeutic use ; Humans ; Leukoplakia, Oral ; therapy ; Photochemotherapy ; methods ; Photosensitizing Agents ; administration & dosage ; therapeutic use ; Practice Guidelines as Topic