A multi-center cross-sectional study of 1495 Chinese oral lichen planus patients

Objective: To explore the clinical epidemiological characteristics of oral lichen planus (OLP) and risk factors for erosive/ulcerative OLP.Materials and Methods: Patients diagnosed with OLP from 11 different hospitals were included in the study. Descriptive statistical methods were used to explore the clinical epidemiological characteristics and logistic regression, sensitivity analysis, and subgroup analysis were utilized to explore the risk factors for erosive/ulcerative OLP.Results: The average age of patients was 49.2 +/- 13.3 years, and 61.4% of the patients were women. The ratios of patients with reticular, hyperemic/erythematous, and erosive/ulcerative lesions were 47.9%, 27.8%, and 24.2%, respectively. Analysis of risk factors for erosive/ulcerative OLP identified the following variables: age, course of disease of 12 months or more, II degrees-III degrees dental calculus, hypertension, diabetes, and heart disease, as well as regions of habitation. Subgroup analysis showed significant differences in risk factors for erosive/ulcerative OLP in patients with and without risk behaviors.Conclusion: The clinical epidemiological characteristics of patients with OLP in the Chinese population in this study are basically consistent with existing reports in developed countries. And we identified clinical characteristics associated with erosive/ ulcerative OLP through clinical epidemiological analysis.

Automated summary

This study investigated the clinical epidemiological characteristics and risk factors for erosive/ulcerative oral lichen planus (OLP) in the Chinese population. The average age of patients was 49.2 years and 61.4% were women. The prevalence of erosive/ulcerative OLP was 24.2%. Risk factor analysis identified age, disease duration, dental calculus, hypertension, diabetes, heart disease, and regions of habitation as factors associated with erosive/ulcerative OLP.