The relationship of plexiform unicystic ameloblastoma to conventional ameloblastoma

Abstract

The term plexiform unicystic ameloblastoma refers to a pattern of epithelial proliferation that has been described in cystic lesions of the jaws. It has been considered hyperplastic epithelium, rather than ameloblastoma, by some pathologists because it does not exhibit previously accepted histologic criteria for ameloblastoma. This article provides histologic evidence that plexiform unicystic ameloblastoma is, in fact, a variant of conventional unicystic ameloblastoma by reporting ten cases of unicystic ameloblastoma that exhibit both patterns. Further evidence of the ameloblastomatous nature of plexiform unicystic ameloblastomas is that their biologic behavior, even when this pattern occurs alone, is similar to that of conventional unicystic ameloblastoma.