Spontaneous palatal fenestration: review of the literature and report of a case.

A 42-year-old, edentulous man presented with a defect in his hard palate. He gave a history of a painless lump one year previously which had discharged after a week. Investigations showed only long-standing hypoplasia of the left palatine process, with no evidence of any destructive process. We assumed that the fistula had developed as a result of breakdown of the mucosa covering an isolated cleft of the hard palate. We offered him repair, but he preferred to rely on his maxillary complete denture to cover the defect, and this has worked.