Larva migrans in the oral mucosa: report of two cases

Abstract

Cutaneous Larva migrans is a very common disease in tropical regions. In the oral mucosa, the infection occurs in the same way as in the skin, but it is rarer. This report describes two cases of Larva migrans in the oral mucosa. The first case was in a 27-year-old woman who presented an erythematous plaque located on the buccal mucosa, extending to a posterior direction, following a linear pattern, to other areas of the mouth. After incisional biopsy of the anterior-most portion of the lesion, morphological details obtained in multiple examined sections suggested Necator or Ancylostoma braziliense larvae as the cause of infection. The second case was in a 35-year-old male who presented a fusiform erythematous plaque in the palatal mucosa. This area was removed and submitted to microscopic examination under a presumptive diagnosis of "parasite migratory stomatitis". The histological characteristics were suggestive of a larva pathway. In both cases the lesion disappeared after biopsy and the patients were symptom-free.