KOREASCHOLAR

Mucormycosis is an aggressive opportunistic fungal infection that can be found in the oral cavity. The fungus usually affects the immunocompromised patients and tends to invade and block blood vessels, resulting in significant tissue necrosis and invasive mucormycosis. However, a non-invasive form of mucormycosis is mostly asymptomatic and found accidentally in the immunocompetent normal hosts, manifested by localized overgrowth of the fungus. Here, we report a rare case of asymptomatic non-invasive mucormycosis of the mandible that was incidentally diagnosed in wide resection specimen of liver transplant patient who had previously underwent surgery of excision and simultaneous alloplastic bone graft due to mandibular ameloblastoma. Histopathological examination of the specimen revealed that there was neither vasculitis nor tissue necrosis, but numerous fungal hyphae were located only within the alloplastic graft materials in decalcified tissue sections. Awareness of the possibility of life-threatening mucormycosis in immunocompromised patients should be emphasized because it can be inactive or reactivated depending on the immune state of patients.

• 유태민(단국대학교 치과대학 통합치의학교실) | Tae Min You (Department of Advanced General Dentistry, School of Dentistry, Dankook University)
• 김현실(연세대학교 치과대학 구강병리학교실/구강종양연구소)
• 남웅(연세대학교 치과대학 구강악안면외과학 교실) | Woong Nam (Department of Oral & Maxillofacial Surgery, Yonsei University College of Dentistry) Correspondence