A 23-year-old woman presented with a slightly bluish,
dome-shaped lesion on the right side of the mouth, just lateral to the frenulum
and below the tongue. She had no significant symptoms, although she occasionally
experienced a "funny taste" in her mouth. The lesion seemed to
vary in size.
This lesion represents which one of
the following?
A ranula is a mucocele of the minor
salivary glands, located under the tongue on the floor of the mouth.
When the small ducts of these glands become plugged, the secretions
may build up into large, mucus-filled cystic structures that often
partially rupture and discharge a foul-tasting material; these ruptures
may cause the lesion to shrink in size. The lesions have a tendency
to recur but do not pose any significant health risk to the patient,
except for their nuisance value.
Picture Quiz
