Odontogenic Keratocyst: Developing a Protocol for Surgical Intervention.

The aim of this study was to report the outcome of a conservative treatment protocol - "enucleation and packing open" for odontogenic keratocyst (OKC). Ten patients with OKC were treated at our institute by peripheral ostectomy, enucleation followed by open packing. This conservative treatment protocol was selected because of relatively young age of the patients and relatively large size of the lesions. All the cases were monitored at regular predetermined intervals using clinical evaluation and panoramic radiographs. There was no evidence of recurrence during follow-up. The conservative treatment protocol for OKC, based on enucleation followed by open packing would be a possible choice in view of the simplicity of surgical procedure and low morbidity. This treatment modality has a low recurrence rate and may be particularly useful in young patients and patients with advanced systemic disease not amenable to major surgical intervention.