Lipomas are benign soft tissue neoplasms frequently found in the human body. Head and neck lipomas are relatively uncommon, accounting for 1 to 4% of benign lesions at this location. This 14-year retrospective study analyzed the clinical-pathological features of cases of oral cavity lipomas and their histopathological variants seen at a single oral pathology referral center.

Data on age, sex, anatomical location, clinical diagnosis, and histological subtypes were collected from all cases microscopically diagnosed as lipoma. Three previously trained oral pathologists re-evaluated hematoxylin/eosin-stained slides of all selected cases.

Among 7,861 oral and maxillofacial lesions diagnosed at the service, 95 (1.2%) were lipomas or their histopathological variants. There was a predominance of female patients (n = 65; 68%); the mean age at diagnosis was 58.8 years (±13.56). We found the following histological subtypes: conventional lipoma, fibrolipoma, spindle cell lipoma, sialolipoma, osteolipoma, chondrolipoma, and intramuscular lipoma. The buccal mucosa was the most affected site. Conventional lipoma and fibrolipoma were the most commonly diagnosed histological variants. Although most lipomas are asymptomatic, large lipomas can occur, reaching a diameter of 4 cm.

The present study reinforces the importance of careful clinical and histopathological examination in order to obtain an accurate diagnosis and to ensure appropriate treatment.