Many factors have been proposed to influence oral infection with yeast. The aim of this study was to determine the prevalence of oral yeasts in oral lichen planus (OLP) patients and control subjects, and to perform a multiple logistic regression analysis to identify factors that influence oral Candida infection in OLP patients. In this cross-sectional study, 90 new patients with OLP and 90 sex- and age-matched control subjects with no mucosal lesions were interviewed about their health status, use of medication, and smoking and alcohol habits. Swab and unstimulated whole saliva samples were collected and salivary pH was measured. A positive Candida culture was more prevalent among OLP patients (48.9%) than among control subjects (26.7%). Candida albicans was the most frequently isolated species in both groups. By logistic regression analysis, unstimulated whole salivary flow rates of 0.11-0.24 ml min(-1) (OR = 5.90) and 0.25-0.32 ml min(-1) (OR = 3.51) and benzodiazepine anxiolytics intake (OR = 8.30) were independently associated with the presence of Candida among OLP patients. Age, denture wearing, levels of dentition, decreased salivary pH, antihypertensive drugs, and alcohol consumption were not associated with oral Candida infection in OLP patients. The results indicate that data on benzodiazepine anxiolytics intake and evaluation of unstimulated whole salivary flow rate should be considered as part of the clinical evaluation to identify OLP patients at risk for Candida infection.

Recently, an interest in the study of oral candidiasis has markedly increased mainly because of its association with viral infections due to human immunodeficiency, but also because of its relation with potentially malignant lesions of oral mucosa. These lesions belong to the wide group of leukoplakia. Leukoplakia is a clinical term used to describe a range of nonspecific white lesions, whose appearance does not generally correlate well with histopathologic changes; therefore, biopsy should be performed in all cases to determine which are precancerous or potentially malignant ones. In order to study the association of Candida albicans and the types of mucosal lesions, we took 30 consecutive biopsies of oral mucosa and the smears for microbiologic examination from the changed surface of mucosa and from the rest of oral cavity. The study group consisted of 30 patients, 21 women and 9 men, with the average age of 50.23 years (range, 25-77 years). In 6 cases Candida was diagnosed in mucosal biopsy. In the smear from the lesion, it was present in 3 cases, and 2 cases were found in the smear from an unchanged oral mucosa. In 9/30 cases (30%) Candida was positive regardless of the smear area or mode of diagnosis. The most common lesion is leukoplakia, diagnosed in 12/30 cases (40%), in 6 female and 6 male patients. The average age of those patients was 52.42 years. The lesions were located as follows: cheek mucosa - 5 cases; gingival mucosa - 2; lower lip - 2; floor of the mouth - 2; soft palate - 1; Candida was present in 3/12 cases. The lesion with the second highest incidence is lichen planus (9 cases), with positive Candida infection in 4/9 (44.44%). Epithelial dysplasia, although diagnosed in a very small number of cases (1/30 or 3.3%) with leukoplakia, was associated with a Candida infection. Generally, Candida is present in potentially malignant oral mucosal lesions (in 3/12 or 25% of leukoplakia cases, in 4/9 or 44.44% of lichen planus cases, and 1/1 squamous papilloma), with an increasing incidence in lesions with serious dysplastic epithelial changes

Patients with OLP resident in Serbia do not have evidence of chronic liver disease or infection with HBV or HCV. The exact aetiological role between hepatic disease and OLP remains unclear.

Smoking and alcohol consumption are often coexistent factors making it difficult to assess the effects of these factors individually. In our study the highest prevalence of leukoplakia (33.3%) was established in subjects who smoked cigarettes and consumed alcohol, compared to those who smoke tobacco only (18.2%).

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Histological abnormalities of clinically normal-looking oral mucosa taken at different distances from the tumor lesion indicated the existence of subclinical field change and represent an important parameter during the assessment of the adequacy of surgical resection margins in oral cancer management.

Bacground/Aim. Systemic candidiasis in intensive care units remains an improtant problem due to antifungal resistance. Patients undergoing radiotherapy for head and neck cancer are at increased risk of developing oral candidiasis and they more frequent have prior fungi colonization. Due to identification of specific risk factors predisposing to fungal infection in order to threat such patients the aim of this study was to determine the presence of Candida species in patients with oral squamous cell carcinoma and compare it to the control subjects (patients with benign oral mucosal lesions). Methods. A total number of 30 consecutive oral cancer examined patients were included in this prospective study (24 men and 6 women with a mean age of 61.47 years, range 41-81 years). The control group consisted of 30 consecutive patients with histologically proven benign oral mucosal lesions (16 men and 14 women with a mean age of 54.53 years, range 16- 83 years). The samples for mycological examination were obtained by using sterile cotton swabs from the cancer lesion surface and in the patients of the control group from the benign mucosal lesion surface. Samples were inoculated in Sabouraud' dextrose agar. For identification purposes, Mackenzie germ tube test was performend on all isolates. Results. The prevalence of Candida was significantly higher in oral cancer patients than in control subjects (χ2 = 5.455, p = 0.020). Candida was found on nine of the 30 cancer surfaces; 5 (16.7%) were identified as non-albicans Candida and 4 (13.3%) as Candida albicans. In the control group, only Candida albicans was isolated from 2 (6.7%) patients. In this study, no statistically significant differences in the presence of Candida species was found with respect to gender, age, smoking, alcohol consumption, wearing of dental protheses and the site of cancer lesion. Conclusion. The increased prevalence of yeasts on the surfaces of oral carcinoma indicates a need for their suppression before any cancer treatment. There was no evidence for an association between gender, age, smoking, alcohol consumption, wearing of dental protheses, the site of cancer lesion and the yeast presence

BACKGROUND: It is well known that oral leukoplakia is the most common precancerous lesion of the oral mucosa. Although tobacco and alcohol are known to be major risk factors for oral leukoplakia worldwide, there are no data on risk factors for oral leukoplakia in our country. The aim of our study was to analyze the association between oral leukoplakia and smoking habit, with attention to the duration and quantity of smoking. METHODS: The study population consisted of 352 patients aged 40-70 years. Prior to the clinical examination, each subject answered a standardized questionnaire regarding tobacco-smoking habits. Oral leukoplakia was diagnosed and grouped according to internationally accepted criteria. Chisquare test was used for statistical analysis. RESULTS: Of the entire sample, 279 were smokers and 73 non-smokers. Oral leukoplaka was found in 53 subjects and among them 50 were smokers and 3 were nonsmokers. All smokers had only used cigarettes. The relative risk of developing oral leukoplakia increased with duration of cigarette smoking habit. The majority of smokers with leukoplakia (74.0%) smoked more than 20 cigarettes per day compared to 34.5% of those without leukoplakia. The highest prevalence of leukoplakia (33.3%) was found in subjects who used cigarettes and alcohol. CONCLUSION: In view of these results, cigarette smoking is significantly related to the etiology of oral leukoplakia