Oral manifestations of hepatitis C virus infection

Extrahepatic manifestations(EHMs)of hepatitis C virus(HCV)infection can affect a variety of organ systems with significant morbidity and mortality.Some of the most frequently reported EHM of HCV infection,involve the oral region predominantly or exclusively.Oral lichen planus(OLP)is a chronic inflammatory condition that is potentially malignant and represents cell-mediated reaction to a variety of extrinsic antigens,altered selfantigens,or super antigens.Robust epidemiological evidence support the link between OLP and HCV.As the virus may replicate in the oral mucosa and attract HCV-specific T lymphocytes,HCV may be implicated in OLP pathogenesis.Sj?gren syndrome(SjS)is an autoimmune exocrinopathy,characterized by dryness of the mouth and eyes and a multitude of other systemic signs and symptoms.SjS patients have also an increased risk of non-Hodgkin lymphoma.Patients with chronic hepatitis C do frequently have histological signs of Sjgren-like sialadenitis with mild or even absent clinical symptoms.However,it is still unclear if HCV may cause a disease mimicking SjS or it is directly responsible for the development of SjS in a specific subset of patients.Oral squamous cell carcinoma is the most common oral malignant tumour and at least in some part of the world could be linked to HCV.