Question:easy
What is the most common cause of oroantral fistula?
What is the most common cause of oroantral fistula?
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Upper molar roots lie near the antral floor; extraction is the commonest cause.
Updated On: Jun 24, 2026
- Tuberculosis
- Penetrating injury
- Tooth extraction
- Iatrogenic
Show Solution
The Correct Option is C
Solution and Explanation
Step 1: Start from anatomy. The roots of the upper molars sit just under the floor of the maxillary sinus, sometimes separated by only a thin shell of bone or by mucosa alone.
Step 2: Because of this proximity, pulling out an upper molar can tear through into the antrum and leave a permanent track to the mouth. Extraction is therefore the leading cause, and the first molar contributes roughly half of all such cases.
Step 3: Granulomatous infections of the maxilla such as tuberculosis, malignant erosion, trauma and surgical mishaps are all listed in textbooks but each is uncommon compared with routine dental extraction. They are distractors here.
Step 4: The diagnosis is confirmed by food or fluid passing from mouth to nose and the inability to create suction in the mouth. The single best answer for the commonest cause is tooth extraction.
\[\boxed{\text{Tooth extraction}}\]
Step 2: Because of this proximity, pulling out an upper molar can tear through into the antrum and leave a permanent track to the mouth. Extraction is therefore the leading cause, and the first molar contributes roughly half of all such cases.
Step 3: Granulomatous infections of the maxilla such as tuberculosis, malignant erosion, trauma and surgical mishaps are all listed in textbooks but each is uncommon compared with routine dental extraction. They are distractors here.
Step 4: The diagnosis is confirmed by food or fluid passing from mouth to nose and the inability to create suction in the mouth. The single best answer for the commonest cause is tooth extraction.
\[\boxed{\text{Tooth extraction}}\]
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