Oral lichen planus. Presentation of a case

Abstract

Lichen planus is a pruriginous, eruptive inflammatory disease of the skin, of chronic or sub acute course that may involve mucosa, mainly the oral one. Its etiology is unknown, and is related with subjective stimuli (nervous, depressive status). Infections, metabolic and endocrine disorders are also mentioned as possible causes. Recently it has been considered that this disease may present a retarded  hypersensibility reaction. The current work deals with the clinical  case of a female patient, aged 54 years, who was referred by her  family physician with antecedents of psychosomatic disorders, as a  result of stress maintained during a long time period. She had a  lesion in the area of the right and left cheeks, and in the dorsal  side of the tongue. It was taken as a non infectious, inflammatory  lesion of the oral mucosa, from which a biopsy was obtained, resulting 
in the development of an oral lichen planus. The diagnosis was  corroborated by histopathological examination. The patient was treated  in different stages with anxiolitics and immunomodulators, achieving  satisfactory results.