Root resorption associated with mandibular bone erosion in a patient with scleroderma.

A rare feature of mandibular bone erosion and external apical resorption of a mandibular left third molar (tooth #17) in a patient with scleroderma is described. Scleroderma is characterized by vascular and fibrous changes of the mucocutaneous surfaces and viscera caused by immunologically mediated connective tissue disorders. A dental panoramic tomogram of the patient revealed notable erosion of the left ramus, the inferior border of the mandible, and the left coronoid process. Resorption of the distal root of the tooth #17 was notable, coincident with the mandibular erosive process, and such association has not yet been reported. The report details the possible cause of this unusual presentation of tooth root resorption. The increased physical pressure of the tight facial mucocutaneous tissues from the scleroderma is likely to have participated in the resorptive process.