Prevalence of oral manifestations in HIV-infected children: a literature review

Abstract

Objective: to review the literature on the most common oral lesions in HIV-infected children. Material and Methods: a literature review was performed in Medical Literature (PubMed/Medline) and Health Virtual Library (HVL) databases from 2000 to 2015. Results: there were 163 papers and 11 were selected according with inclusion and exclusion criteria. Oral candidiasis was the most prevalent oral lesion followed by aphthous ulcerations, linear gingival erythema and oral hairy leukoplakia. Conclusion: despite advances in the disease treatment with the introduction of potent antiretroviral therapy, oral manifestations remain frequent in HIV-infected patients, with candidiasis being the most common finding. The review showed the importance of the dentist in the identification and early treatment of these lesions.