Vital staining with iodine solution in delineating the border of oral dysplastic lesions

Objective. The borders of dysplastic lesions of the oral mucosa are often vaguely delineated. The purpose of this study was to determine if vital staining with an iodine solution can precisely delineate the boundary of superficial spread of dysplastic or malignant epithelium. Study design. Thirty-seven biopsies were obtained from 18 patients with possible malignant lesions of the oral mucosa. Deviations between the clinical boundary obtained with vital staining and the histopathologic boundary determined in hemotoxylin-eosin-and lectin-stained sections were measured with light microscopy. Result. The clinical boundaries defined with the vital staining agreed well with the pathologic border lines and were in error by less than 3 mm. Conclusion. This result suggests that vital staining with an iodine solution has great potential in determining the extent and precise borders of the dysplastic epithelium. A 5-mm border of normal tissue peripheral to the iodine-positive area would be adequate for the complete removal of the dysplastic epithelium.