Osteoma in the oral cavity of a striped skunk (Mephitis mephitis)

Vollständiger Abstract

Worum geht es in dieser Arbeit?

Tumors in skunks are not well-documented in the literature and are thought to occur relatively uncommonly. During an annual physical examination of a three-year-old, female, captive, education-program skunk at Mercer County Wildlife Center in New Jersey, two hard, spherical masses were found on the lateral gingiva of each maxilla. The right mass measured approximately 8 × 8 ×15 mm, and the left mass measured approximately 5 × 5 × 5 mm. The masses were pedunculated, and the degree of invasiveness could not be determined on pre-surgical radiographs. The masses were easily removed, and post-removal radiographs showed minimal bone lysis. Histopathology revealed an unencapsulated, but well-defined osteoma composed of organized trabeculae of woven bone in a loose connective tissue matrix. No such neoplasm in the oral cavity of a skunk has been recorded previously in the literature.