GENERALIZED GINGIVAL ENLARGEMENT DUE TO ACCUMULATION OF AMYLOID-LIKE MATERIAL

Hyaline or amyloid-like substances may be seen in several oral lesions . Some of these originate from epithelial cells and some from connecti ve tissue components. In this study, amyloid-like material causing gin gival enlargement in three patients, with eyelid involvement in two, w as examined using histochemistry, immunohistochemistry and electron mi croscopy. These accumulations did not share the classical features of amyloid such as green birefringence under polarized light after Congo red staining. Our findings suggest that epithelial degeneration plays an important role in the pathogenesis of these amyloid-like accumulati ons. These substances may be the result of defective amyloidogenesis a nd our cases may represent an oral counterpart of ligneous conjunctivi tis or colloid milium of the skin.