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If an oral examination reveals a lesion or abnormality in your mouth region, your dentist may be required to perform an oral biopsy. This is essentially a surgical procedure in which a small piece of tissue is removed from the legion, so that a pathologist may determine the cause of the abnormality and whether it is cancerous. The lesion may be in the bone or soft tissue of your mouth, and accordingly, your dental surgeon will remove a sample from your gum, jaw or tooth.

Types of Biopsies

Broadly, there are two types of oral biopsies that your dentist will choose from. The first is an incisional biopsy. In this procedure, your dentist removes a piece of tissue from the lesion and another one from the healthy region of gum or tooth around it, and the healthy and infected tissue are then compared.

An excisional biopsy, on the other hand, is  a procedure in which the surgeon removes the entire lesion. Excisional bippsies are generally performed on growths that are relatively small and in parts of the mouth that are easy to access. Apart from being a diagnostic tool, an excisional biopsy also prevents the growth from spreading further.

There are different ways in which the tissue sample may be removed from your mouth region. This choice depends on a careful examination of the kind of growth and its exact location. Some biopsies require the insertion of a needle to remove a sample. One option available to the surgeon is a fine needle biopsy. In this a needle connected to a syringe is inserted into the mouth and it collects cell sample from the infected tissue. Alternatively, a core needle biopsy may be performed. In this procedure a blade is used rather than a needle to remove a sample of the tissue.

Your dentist may even perform a brush biopsy. This is a noninvasive procedure used for growths in easily accessible regions of the mouth, such as your gum. In this, a brush is rubbed hard on the legion to collect tissue samples.

What Does a Biopsy Test

A biopsy is a diagnostic tool. It allows a pathologist to test the infected tissue thoroughly and identify exactly what is causing the abnormal growth. If an imaging test has already revealed cancer, the biopsy will help identify the stage and extent of the cancer, and whether its source is in the mouth or elsewhere.

Preparing for an Oral Biopsy

Preparation for the surgery is not very complex. If the biopsy needs to be performed on a bone region, your dentist would first recommend x-rays or CT (computed tomography) scans. He or she may ask you not to eat anything for a few hours before the biopsy. Once you arrive, the procedure would typically begin with an antibacterial rinse. In adults, oral biopsies are usually performed with local anesthesia. This means that you would be fully awake during the procedure. However, general anesthesia may be given if the lesion is in an area of the mouth that is hard to reach.

The Recovery Process

Immediately after your biopsy, you will have numbness in your gums because of the anesthesia. This will wear off in a few hours and you should be able to resume a normal diet. In some cases, your dentist may recommend only soft foods for a couple of days. It is also possible to have soreness in your mouth for a few days. However, if the soreness persists along with pain, you notice bleeding, or there is unusual swelling, you must get back to your dentist immediately.

An oral biopsy carries a risk of infection. However, such cases are extremely rare, especially since antibiotics are prescribed following the biopsy. On the whole, the diagnostic value of a biopsy is immense, and the benefits far outweigh the risks. It may help in timely identification of a cancer, and subsequent treatment. Timely biopsies have often saved lives.