Association of Hashimoto’s thyroiditis and anti-thyroid antibodies with oral lichen planus: A cross-sectional study

Abstract

Hashimoto’s thyroiditis (HT) and its autoantibodies may be associated with oral lichen planus (OLP). In this cross-sectional study, we aimed to assess the relationship among HT, auto-anti-thyroid antibodies, and OLP in a Chinese population of 247 patients with oral lichen planus. Clinical manifestations of OLP were evaluated using the Thongprasom scoring system and clinical type. The diagnosis of HT was based on thyroid function, anti-thyroid peroxidase antibody (anti-TPOAb) and anti-thyroglobulin antibody (anti-TgAb) detection, and ultrasonography. The prevalence of HT in all patients with OLP was 39.68% (98/247); the prevalence in females with OLP was 46.24% (86/186), which was higher than that in males with OLP 19.67% (12/61) (P < 0.01). The titers of the two HT autoantibodies in females with OLP were higher than those in males (P < 0.01). The clinical manifestations of OLP, regardless of being evaluated using the Thongprasom system or clinical type, were not significantly associated with HT development or TPOAb (P = 0.864) or TgAb titers (P = 0.745). In this population-based southern Chinese cohort, the prevalence of HT in patients with OLP, particularly in female patients with OLP, was significantly higher than that in the general population. Female patients had higher HT autoantibody titers than male patients. However, the clinical manifestations of OLP were not significantly correlated with either HT development or auto-anti-thyroid antibody levels. The findings could help further elucidate the factors involved in the relationship between oral lichen planus and Hashimoto’s thyroiditis.

Crossroads between Skin and Endocrine Glands: The Interplay of Lichen Planus with Thyroid Anomalies

“…The positivity rate of both TPOAbs and TgAbs was elevated in women than men (39.25% versus 19.67%, p = 0.005; 25.27% versus 6.56%, p = 0.002, respectively). No association between the clinical manifestations in OLP and HT-related antibodies was confirmed, neither when using OLP clinical scores or the description of OLP subtypes [56]. Moreover, a cross-sectional study from 2020 was conducted by Tang et al [49] on 585 patients diagnosed with OLP from East China (mean age of 52.80 ± 13.52 years) compared to 10,441 controls (mean age of 53.50 ± 13.05 years); HT prevalence was statistically significantly higher in the studied population (12.1% versus 6.1%, p < 0.05) [49], as in previously mentioned cohorts [53,56].…”

“…Similarly, Zhang's [56] cross-sectional study from 2022 on 247 patients with OLP (average age of 45.21 ± 12.72 years) identified an HT prevalence among women (N = 186) of 46.24%, which was statistically significantly increased when compared to OLP males (N = 61, 19.67%, p = 0.000) [56]. The positivity rate of both TPOAbs and TgAbs was elevated in women than men (39.25% versus 19.67%, p = 0.005; 25.27% versus 6.56%, p = 0.002, respectively).…”

Possible interplay of diabetes mellitus and thyroid diseases in oral lichen planus: A pooled prevalence analysis

“…The differences of the pooled prevalence were observed in the subjects from various continents, probably due to the ethnic population and geographic differences in Asian, European and American countries ( Table 2 ). Also, the stratified analyses by subtypes of TD, such as Hashimoto’s thyroiditis, hyperthyroidism, and hypothyroidism, 8 , 9 were not performed partly due to not available data. Another limitation is heterogeneity that given the methodological variabilities in the OLP studies.…”

Association between oral lichen planus and Hashimoto thyroiditis: A systematic review

“…Thus, it could be hypothesized that the severity of OLP lesions could be linked to the serum levels of TPOAb (Alikhani et al, 2017). Nevertheless, it seems there is no “dose response effect” between HT and OLP prognosis (Zhang, Hou, et al, 2022). In fact, some studies reported that in patients affected by both OLP and ATDs, OLP lesions were less severe compared to individuals affected only by OLP (Robledo‐Sierra et al, 2018).…”