ORAL HIV-ASSOCIATED KAPOSI'S SARCOMA WITH ATYPICAL CLINICAL PRESENTATION: REPORT OF A CASE

Abstract

Kaposi's sarcoma is a multifocal angioproliferative malignant neoplasm caused by human herpesvirus 8 (HHV-8) and commonly associated with acquired immunodeficiency syndrome (AIDS). A 25-year-old male patient recently diagnosed with AIDS was referred for consultation reporting multiple intraoral lesions with 2 months of evolution. Physical examination revealed diffuse multinodular purplish-red lesions of fibroelastic consistency, associated with spontaneous bleeding, affecting the whole maxillary and mandibular keratinized mucosa. Incisional biopsy was performed. Histopathologic examination revealed a mucosal fragment covered by stratified squamous epithelium exhibiting a large amount of blood vessels in the connective tissue and vascular proliferation associated with a large number of spindle-shaped neoplastic cells and red blood cell extravasation. Immunohistochemistry for HHV-8 was positive, confirming the diagnosis of Kaposi's sarcoma. After 3 months of systemic chemotherapy with liposomal doxorubicin the patient showed improvement of the oral lesions.