Association between the clinical severity of oral lichen planus and anti-TPO level in thyroid patients

Abstract

This study considered a possible relationship between the severity of oral lichen planus (OLP), serum anti-TPO autoantibodies (TPOAb) titer and thyroid disease in OLP patients. Forty-six OLP patients with positive TPOAb results (> 35 IU/ml) who had also been diagnosed with thyroid disease were included in the study group. The control group consisted of 46OLP patients with no thyroid disease. The study and control groups (92) were divided to two subgroups of erosive OLP (EOLP) and non-erosive OLP (NEOLP). Serum TPOAb levels and IL-8 (to measure OLP severity) were evaluated using the independent t-test, chi-square and conditional logistic regression analysis (α = 0.05). A significant positive correlation was found between serum IL-8 and TPOAb levels in the study group (r = 0.783; p = 0.001). The positive blood levels of TPOAb were significantly associated with an increased risk of EOLP (OR = 4.02 at 95%CI; 1.21-13.4; p = 0.023). It is possible to used positive serum TPOAb levels in patients with OLP as in indicator of possible undetected thyroid disorders in those patients. Because erosive OLP has been associated with TPOAb in thyroid patients, it may be useful to determine TPOAb levels of such patients to diagnose a possible undetected thyroid disorders and follow-up for malignancy.

A mechanistic linkage between oral lichen planus and autoimmune thyroid disease

“…OLP has recently been associated with LT 4 intake (Robledo‐Sierra et al., , ) and hypothyroidism (Garcia‐Pola et al., ; Lo Muzio et al., ; Robledo‐Sierra et al., ; Siponen et al., ). To the best of our knowledge, only three studies have investigated the serum levels of antithyroid antibodies in patients with OLP (Alikhani et al., ; Chang et al., ; Lin et al., ). Chang et al.…”

“…This treatment also alleviated the symptoms and reduced the size and severity of ulceration in existing OLP lesions. Finally, a study conducted in 96 Iranian patients with OLP showed that the serum levels of TPOAb were significantly associated with an increased risk of erosive OLP (OR = 4.02, 95% CI 1.21–13.4; p = .023) (Alikhani et al., ). These results suggest that some immunological mechanism in Hashimoto's thyroiditis involving antithyroid antibodies may also play an important pathogenic role in a subgroup of patients with OLP.…”

“…Evidence also exists that thyroid disease, mainly hypothyroidism, is involved in the pathogenesis of OLP (Garcia‐Pola, Llorente‐Pendas, Seoane‐Romero, Berasaluce, & Garcia‐Martin, ; Lo Muzio, Santarelli, Campisi, Lacaita, & Favia, ; Siponen, Huuskonen, Laara, & Salo, ) and cutaneous lichen planus (Dreiher, Shapiro, & Cohen, ). The serum levels of thyroid antibodies, including antithyroglobulin and antithyroperoxidase antibodies, are increased in patients with OLP (Alikhani et al., ; Chang, Chiang, Hsiao, & Sun, ; Lin, Wang, Chia, & Sun, ). Although the designs of the aforementioned studies do not enable the establishment of causality, it is evident that either the use of LT 4 or an underlying thyroid disorder plays an important role in the aetiology of OLP in a subgroup of patients.…”

Possible Mechanisms Involved in the Cooccurrence of Oral Lichen Planus and Hashimoto’s Thyroiditis

“…Although the precise mechanisms for autoantibody induction and production in the sera of OLP patients are unknown, AITD may lead to the production of antigens in the damaged thyroid tissue, which then activate antigen-specific B cells to produce antibodies locally and in the blood circulation of OLP patients. The severity of OLP lesions is directly linked to TPOAb levels [23]. In addition, circulating thyroid antibodies in HT patients contribute to the triggering of oral mucosa-specific autoimmune responses, leading to OLP [11].…”

A Cross-Sectional Study of Oral Lichen Planus Associated With Thyroid Diseases in East China

“…In 2016, a study was conducted by Chinese Society of Endocrinology, revealing that more than 40% of the population suffered from TD (8). In the study of the relationship between OLP and TD, some scholars found that erosive OLP has been associated with anti-TPO autoantibodies (TPOAb) in thyroid patients, it may be useful to determine TPOAb levels of such patients to diagnose a possible undetected thyroid disorders and followup for malignancy (9). HT is a kind of TD with incidence from 0.4 to 2% in the general population (10).…”