Erythroplakia
Overview
Erythroplakia is a flat red patch or lesion in the mouth that cannot be attributed to any other pathology. A similar term is "erythroplasia", which has a papular appearance.
Causes
Erythroplakia has an unknown cause but researchers presume it to be similar to the cause of squamous cell carcinoma. It is mostly found in elderly men around the ages of 65 - 74. It is commonly associated with smoking.
Diagnosis
There are many other conditions that are similar in appearance and must be ruled out before a diagnosis of erythroplakia is made. Sometimes, a diagnosis is delayed for up to two weeks in order to see if the lesion spontaneously regresses on its own or if another cause can be found. Erythroplakia frequently is associated with dysplasia, and is thus a precancerous lesion.
Treatment
Treatment involves biopsy of the lesion to identify extent of dysplasia. Complete excision of the lesion is sometimes advised depending on the histopathology found in the biopsy. Even in these cases, recurrence of the erythroplakia is common and, thus, long-term monitoring is needed.