Do we really not need to treat patients with white reticular lesions of oral lichen planus?: A case-control pilot study

Background and Design: How oral lichen planus (OLP) affects oral health-related quality of life has been shown in previous studies but only symptomatic erosive and ulcerative OLP patients were included in such studies. The aim of this study was to determine if oral health-related quality of life is affected in patients with OLP, not only erosive but also reticular form of OLP. Materials and Methods: Patients who were diagnosed with OLP in the dermatology outpatient clinic and age- and gender-matched healthy individuals were included in this study. Oral health-related quality of life was assessed by using the 14-item Oral Health Impact Profile (OHIP)-14 in all participants. Results: Forty patients with OLP and 40 healthy subjects were included in this study. Mixed type lesions were present in 25% of patients while solely reticular lesions were present in 75%. OLP was painful and oral functions were affected in 50% of patients. There was a statistically significant difference in median OHIP-total score between patient and control groups. The median OHIP-14 total score in lichen planus patients and controls was 8.5 and 3. However, there was no significant difference between patients with solely reticular lesions and those with mixed type lesions. Conclusion: In this study, we have shown that oral health-related quality of life was affected both in patients with only reticular lesions and in patients with mixed type lesions.