Lesions of the oral mucosa: an epidemiological study of 23785 Mexican patients.

This study is a cross-sectional report of oral mucosal lesions in 23785 patients more than 15 years of age who requested elective dental care in a dental school. Among the patients examined, the general lesion rate was 356.60 lesions per 1000 patients. Sixty-eight entities were identified, the lesions being more common among males. White, red, and ulcerated lesions were seen to predominate, associated mostly with chronic irritative causative factors. The prevalence rates of individual oral mucosal lesions ranged from 0.55 to 105.36 per 1000 patients examined. Age and sex assessment showed some differences in the type and presentation rates of the lesions. These and other epidemiological aspects are discussed.