Objectives:

To clinically evaluate the buccal mucosa of infant-juvenile patients diagnosed with lymphoblastic leukemia.

Methods:

Within 12 months, 36 patients aged between 1 and 14 years old who were diagnosed with B- or T-cell precursor lymphoblastic leukemia and treated under GBTLI-LLA 2009 or ALL IC-BFM 2009 protocols were consecutively enrolled. The buccal mucosa was clinically evaluated at the beginning of the prophase/induction phase of chemotherapy and after 15 days of treatment.

Results:

The 25 patients whose buccal mucosa was evaluated had a median age of 6.9 years old, and 64% (n=16) were male. The majority had B-cell precursor lymphoblastic leukemia (96%; n=24). Eleven of them (44% n=11) showed buccal manifestations, mostly at the beginning of the prophase/induction phase. The manifestations and their respective frequency were petechiae (31.6%; n=6), dry lips (26.3%, n=5), and buccal mucositis (15.8%, n=3). Non-keratinized mucosa was the preferred site (84.2%, n=16).

Conclusions:

Buccal manifestations have a low frequency in infant-juvenile patients with lymphoblastic leukemia, as most patients in this study showed healthy mucosa. This finding could be due to our small sample or the low toxicity of the protocols and the dental team present at the Institution.

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