Rare Locations of Epidermoid Cyst: Case Reports and Review

BACKGROUND: Epidermoid cysts are benign lesions encountered throughout the body. Eighty percent of epidermoid cyst seen in ovaries and testicles, whereas in head and neck region they account for only 1.6-7.0%. 1.6% of epidermoid cysts occur in oral cavity and they account for 0.01% of all the oral cavity cysts. CASE DETAILS: Two case reports of epidermoid cyst has been discussed. One patient reported with well defined swelling in the right lower one third of the face, another one in the upper lip. Initially the cases were diagnosed as Lipoma and salivary adenoma respectively but histologically they turned out to be epidermoid cyst. Hence, we aim at highlighting the differential diagnosis pertaining to the anatomical location. The PubMed database search made on January 2016 yielded 674 articles of epidermoid cyst in the head and neck region. In that there is only one case reported occuring in the lower one third of face. In the current report, we outline the second case of epidermoid cyst localized to the right mandibular body region without bone involvement. Another case in our report was localized in the upper lip. In the literature totally seven cases were reported till now occurring in the lip. CONCLUSION: Although epidermoid cysts are rarely encountered in the oral cavity, the possibility that they may occur warrants the need for successful management to avoid misdiagnosis.