Giant salivary calculi: an orocervical fistula caused by a submandibular gland calculus

Large calculi of the salivary glands are rare. They may go undetected for many years. The authors report three cases of giant submandibular gland calculi. In one patient, the calculus was an incidental finding. In all patients, the mass was in the substance of the gland; in one, the configuration of the mass was unusual and it had eroded through the floor of the buccal cavity forming an orocervical fistula (the first such report) and in another the mass occupied a small portion of Wharton's duct. The histopathologic findings in all three cases were of nonspecific chronic inflammation. All the patients made a smooth recovery and had no complaints at follow-up.