Background: Oral mucoceles are simple lesions seen very often in dental clinic. Usually they are treated by surgical, conventional intervention. This study provides additional data with the use of swab–cotton cryosurgery for the management of oral mucocele.

Patients and method: Twenty–three patients, 12 females and 11 males, aged 5 to 76 years (mean 28.9 years), with oral mucocele were enrolled in this study, which consisted of the  a direct application of a swab cotton, soaked in liquid nitrogen (–196°C) on the lesion. No topical or needle anesthesia was required. There were three cycles on each lesion on each session.  

Result: Among 23 mucoceles treated, 19 were successful resolved with one application of nitrogen, without any recurrences; the other four could only be resolved by conventional surgery because unsuccessful result either by recurrence (1case) or no resolution at all.  Among the unsuccessful cases, two were too large and deep mucoceles and the other two were under orthodontic treatment, producing a repetitive trauma in the region. Edema was the main post–operative complication, ranging from one to three days, accompanied by little or no pain.

Conclusion: The technique applied in this study adds credibility as an alternative, non–invasive procedure for the treatment for oral mucocele.