Oral lichen planus (OLP), which often affects middle-aged adults, is a disorder of unknown etiology, and is defined as a precancerous condition. We report a clinical analysis of 130 cases diagnosed histopathologically as OLP or suspected OLP in this study.
Prediction with regard to gender was noted in 36 males and 94 females with the average age at diagnosis of 65 years. The most frequent chief complaint at the initial examination was contact pain (47.0%), followed by white and/or red lesions without symptoms, discomfort, and burning sensation. Although the majority of cases (88.8%) were clinically diagnosed as OLP, some cases were diagnosed as leukoplakia and pemphigus. The most frequently affected site was buccal mucosa (30.7%), followed by alveolar gingiva and gingivobuccal fold. Reticular/plaque-like type (55.4%) was the most common among the three visual phenotypes. Presence of Candida spp. from an oral swab was examined in 30 cases of OLP patients, and was isolated in 11 cases (36.7%). Although OLP is relatively easy to diagnose on the basis of its characteristic appearance, some cases are diagnosed as other diseases such as leukoplakia and pemphigus, suggesting the difficulty of clinically confirming the diagnosis. Further, it is necessary to pay attention when treating patients with OLP in the presence of Candida spp.
