Abstract

ORAL EXFOLIATIVE CYTOLOGY – A REVIEW

Dr. A. Beeula, Dr. Sreeja C.*, Dr. R. Sathish Muthukumar and Dr. S. Gowri

Abstract

As oral cancer is the 6th most common cancer worldwide. Only 50% survival rate is achieved so far. One of the main reasons for high mortality rate is due to late diagnosis and often patients come at the late stage of disease. In relation to the early diagnosis, oral exfoliative cytology technique which has higher benefits in diagnosis of various pre-cancerous and infectious diseases. There are various advancement have been explored in the field of oral cytology. As it is a simple and non-invasive technique, it can be done in mass screening programs and dental op when a suspicious lesion is noted. Understanding the importance and technique of exfoliative cytology can provide the best outcome in diagnosing. This review describes the overall importance of exfoliative cytology, techniques, applications and recent advances.

Keywords: oral cancer, exfoliative cytology, pre-cancer, early diagnosis.