Evidence map›Paper›PMID 41338121›Full record

Observational studyInternational dental journal2026

A Retrospective Observational Study on Oral Leukoplakia Patients Adhering to the Mediterranean Diet From Southern Italy.

Nicol Macripò, Domenico De Falco, Mohssen Ansarin, Massimo Petruzzi

Abstract readObservational Study
In one paragraph

Observational study in International dental journal, 2026. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Not yet cited in PubMed.

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0citing papers in PubMed
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1 · What the graph read from it

What it found

Each row is one number read from the abstract, on the scale the paper reported it, with its interval. Left of the dashed line favours the treatment, right favours the comparator. Under each row is the sentence it came from. New to these charts? A ten-minute tutorial.

The abstract states no effect estimate the extractor could read, or names no intervention and outcome on the map, so this paper lights no cell and moves no belief. It is still indexed, cited and linked below.

2 · The registry

The trial behind it

Trials whose registry record cites this paper, or whose number appears in the abstract. A trial that started after this paper was published is citing it as background, not reporting it.

Neither the registry nor the abstract names a trial number. If this is a trial report, that itself is worth knowing.

3 · Its place in the literature

Who cites it

0 citing papers in PubMed.

No citing paper in PubMed yet.

4 · The record

Corrections and comments

PubMed lists nothing against this paper. Absence here is not a guarantee, only a check that was made.

5 · Who and what money

Authors and funding

4 authors.

Nicol MacripòInterdisciplinary Department of Medicine, University of Bari "Aldo Moro", Bari, Italy.
Domenico De FalcoInterdisciplinary Department of Medicine, University of Bari "Aldo Moro", Bari, Italy. Electronic address: domenico.defalco@uniba.it.
Mohssen AnsarinDivision of Otolaryngology Head and Neck Surgery, European Institute of Oncology IRCCS, Milan, Italy.
Massimo PetruzziInterdisciplinary Department of Medicine, University of Bari "Aldo Moro", Bari, Italy.

Funding

No grant is acknowledged in the PubMed record.

6 · The paper itself

Abstract

objectivesThis retrospective observational study describes demographic, clinical, and pathological variables in a cohort of patients from Southern Italy who adhered to the Mediterranean diet and were diagnosed with oral leukoplakia between 2009 and 2024. The objective was to evaluate the influence of this region-specific dietary pattern on the clinical characteristics of leukoplakia and to determine its malignant transformation (MT) rate. MATERIALS AND

methodsData were extracted from the medical records of patients attending the Oral Medicine Section at University of Bari. The collected information included age, sex, lifestyle habits (smoking and alcohol consumption), number of comorbidities, pharmacological treatments, lesion site and clinical appearance, histological features, symptoms, and human papillomavirus infection. Descriptive and analytical statistical analyses were performed.

resultsA total of 104 patients were included, with a mean follow-up of 4.1 years. Both sexes were almost equally affected, with a mean age of 56 years. A low prevalence of smokers (30.7%) and alcohol users (25%) was observed. Among smokers, leukoplakias were generally homogeneous, whereas among alcohol users, the lesions were predominantly nonhomogeneous. Only a small proportion of lesions (22%) exhibited dysplasia. The tongue was the most frequently affected site (39%) and demonstrated the highest risk of MT. The overall MT rate was 1.9%.

conclusionsThe results of our study may have been positively influenced by the dietary lifestyle of our patients; however, further multicentric studies are needed to strengthen the scientific evidence in this regard by comparing the dietary habits of patients from different geographic areas. CLINICAL RELEVANCE: Although numerous studies have examined patient cohorts with OL across various areas of the world, few have focused on populations from the Mediterranean area, and none have included southern Italy. Therefore, our study represents the first documented cohort of patients with OL adhering to the Mediterranean diet in Southern Italy.

Indexed as

Diet, MediterraneanLeukoplakia, OralAdultAgedAlcohol DrinkingFemaleHumansItalyLife StyleMaleMiddle AgedRetrospective StudiesSmokingAlcohol consumptionMediterranean dietMediterranean regionOral cancerOral leukoplakiaOral potentially malignant disordersTobacco smoking

Identifiers

PMID41338121
PMCPMC12718462

What Socratic holds

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Registered trials

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Read under generation 80e0d062 · epoch 390. Bibliography from PubMed, PubMed Central and OpenAlex; grants from NIH RePORTER; trial links from ClinicalTrials.gov; estimates, votes and beliefs from the Socratic graph.