Glomus tumor: a comprehensive review of the clinical and histopathologic features with report of two intraoral cases.

BACKGROUND: Glomus tumors are benign neoplasms that most commonly present in the subungual region. Their occurrence in the oral cavity is exceedingly rare. Here, we present 2 cases from the oral cavity, detail their clinical and histopathologic features, and review the literature for solitary cases involving the oral regions.

STUDY DESIGN: The English language literature was queried for cases of benign glomus tumors in/around the oral cavity. Additional citations were cross-referenced from the identified sources.

RESULTS: Thirty-one cases of solitary glomus tumor in the oral and paraoral regions have been described, including the present cases. Patient age ranged from 10 to 85years, with an average age of 47years. In 12 of the 31 cases, the tumors occurred in the lips, 5 in the palate, 4 in the tongue, 4 in the buccal mucosa, 3 in the gingiva, and 1 each in the parotid, pterygoid fossa, and oropharynx. Only 18 of these cases had accompanying immunohistochemical stains, with 14 expressing positivity for muscle cell markers.

CONCLUSIONS: Although glomus tumors have distinct histopathologic features, diagnostic confusion may exist with regard to extradigital locations. Detailed documentation and discussion of the clinical and histopathologic features of rare tumors like these are vital to understanding them.