Oral Manifestations in Paraneoplastic Syndromes: A Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis

Objective: This study examined the prevalence of oral signs and symptoms in paraneoplastic syndromes.

Materials and methods: A systematic search on oral paraneoplastic syndromes was conducted in MEDLINE/PubMed, Ovid, and Scopus databases from inception to April 1, 2024. Risk of bias was evaluated using the MURAD or Quality in Prognosis Studies tools, and a random-effects meta-analysis was performed. Evidence quality was rated using the GRADE approach.

Results: The study sample comprised 811 participants from 487 studies. Oral manifestations predominantly affected patients with paraneoplastic pemphigus, mucous membrane pemphigoid, and acanthosis nigricans. Palate is the most frequently affected site (18.2%; 95% confidence interval [CI] 14.7-21.9), while erosion was the most common lesion type (83.3%; 95% CI 72.2-92.0) associated with the underlying malignancy. The prevalence of death in people with paraneoplastic syndromes was 50.9% (95% CI 39.9-61.7), while the prevalence of remission after neoplasm treatment was 63.4% (95% CI 49.9-76.0). GRADE assessment revealed uniformly low to very low certainty for all outcomes studied.

Conclusions: Further research is needed to understand the mechanisms behind these oral manifestations, which is crucial for earlier paraneoplastic syndrome diagnosis and optimal patient management.

Trial registration: PROSPERO number: CRD42022328921.