Purpose The numb chin syndrome is a mental nerve neuropathy that origins in the absence of a mandibular lesion or a dental cause. In most occasions it can be the first symptom of a malignancy.
Methods We present a series of four oncologic patients that were complaining of oral and facial numbness associated with neuralgia. All subjects underwent neurological and dental examinations. Computed tomography, magnetic resonance imaging and bone scan were also carried out. Neoplastic neurological involvement was suspected and the analysis of the cerebrospinal fluid was performed.
Results The neurological examination, combined with the radiological features and the cerebrospinal fluid analysis confirmed the diagnoses of numb chin syndrome associated with carcinomatous meningitis.
