Rapid growth of giant cell granuloma in pregnancy treated with calcitonin

The giant cell granuloma of the jaws is a benign osteolytic lesion that may be treated by curettage, intralesional corticosteroids, or calcitonin. The se medical treatments may be particularly useful when lesions arise in the immature facial skeleton, recur, or enlarge very rapidly-the last two situa tions being recognized complications of pregnancy. In this study, a patient is presented with a central giant cell lesion of the maxilla that switched from a relatively indolent growth pattern to become a rapidly enlarging an d destructive lesion in the maxilla almost immediately after the patient be came pregnant. Although calcitonin treatment is normally avoided in pregnan cy, it proved highly effective, caused no obstetric or fetal side effects, and was not contraindicated by renal failure due to lupus nephritis. Histol ogically, the lesion was converted to a fibro-osseous lesion-like appearanc e. On the basis of the results of this case, calcitonin appears to be a saf e, effective, and conservative treatment for giant cell granulomas that enl arge rapidly during pregnancy.