Kaposi’s sarcoma in Brazilian AIDS patients: a study of 144 cases

One hundred and forty-four Brazilian AIDS patients presenting with Kaposi’s sarcoma (KS) were evaluated with respect to the frequency of oral neoplasms and their clinical features. The majority of the patients were young male adults (age range: 21-40 years old), from which 11.1 % presented with oral KS (OKS) exclusively. Oral and skin lesions were associated in 25% of the cases, while only four patients showed association between oral and visceral KS; 49.3% of the cases were exclusively dermatological. The hard palate was the main site affected, followed by the oropharynx. The localization of KS was found to be similarly frequent in the tongue, gingiva and other sites of the oral mucosa. Candidosis was the prevailing fungal disease; in 20% of the cases it was restricted to the oral mucosa and in 80% it was systemic. No high frequency of paracoccidioidomicosis and cryptococcosis was detected. The prevailing bacterial disease was Tuberculosis and there was only one case of syphilis. Among the viral diseases, the most frequently detected was herpes simplex, followed by molusco contagiosum, condiloma acuminatum and cytomegaloviroses at lower frequencies. Pneumonia caused by Pneumocystes carinii and toxoplasmosis were also identified. The authors emphasise the importance of oral examination in HIV-infected patients bearing in mind several aspects related especially to KS, and stress the need for an interdisciplinary team in the management of these patients, in order to provide better quality of life as well as rapid diagnosis and treatment. Foram estudados pacientes brasileiros portadores de SIDA apresentando sarcoma de Kaposi (SK). O perfil de idade mostrou um grupo com média de idade entre 21 e 40 anos, sendo que 11,1% da amostra apresentava SK exclusivamente na cavidade bucal, observando-se em 25% da amostra uma associação de lesões bucais e na pele. Somente quatro pacientes apresentaram associação de lesões bucais e viscerais, enquanto 49,3% eram portadores de lesões exclusivamente em pele. O palato duro foi a região intrabucal mais afetada, seguida de orofaringe, língua, gengiva entre outras localizações menos freqüentes. Doença fúngica, principalmente candidíase, foi observada exclusivamente na cavidade bucal. Paracoccidioidomicose e criptococose estavam presentes em menor escala. Doenças bacterianas foram representadas quase exclusivamente pela tuberculose, com apenas um caso de sífilis. Entre as doenças virais, herpes simples recidivante foi a mais enco