title: Patient-centred outcome measures for oral mucosal disease are sensitive to treatment.
abstract: The aim of this study was to evaluate the sensitivity of two patient-centred outcome measures to the topical application of a corticosteroid (betamethasone) in the treatment of oral lichen planus (OLP). Forty-eight patients with clinical and histological features of OLP were recruited to take part in a 6-week study of the effectiveness of topical betamethasone for the treatment of symptomatic OLP. Participants completed a questionnaire incorporating the 16-item UK Oral Health Related Quality Of Life measure (OHQOL) and the 14-item Oral Health Impact Profile (OHIP-14), rated their pain on 'global' and visual analogue scales (VAS) and underwent an oral examination, at the start and end of the trial. Four (8\%) patients failed to complete the study. The clinical signs of OLP had improved for half (22) of the patients following treatment. Twenty-nine (66%) reported that their oral pain had reduced ('global' scale). More objectively, there were significant differences in VAS ratings of pain (P =0.005), OHIP-14 scores (P =0.036) and OHQOL scores (P =0.003) between the start and end of the trial. In conclusion, both OHQOL and OHIP-14, patient-centred outcome measures are sensitive to the clinical effects of topical betamethasone in the treatment of oral lichen planus.
authors.affiliation: Periodontology & Public Health, Faculty of Dentistry, Prince Philip Dental Hospital, University of Hong Kong, 34 Hospital Road, Hong Kong SAR, China.
authors.forename: C
authors.initials: C
authors.lastname: McGrath
authors.forename: A M
authors.initials: AM
authors.lastname: Hegarty
authors.forename: T A
authors.initials: TA
authors.lastname: Hodgson
authors.forename: S R
authors.initials: SR
authors.lastname: Porter
mesh_terms: D001623:Betamethasone / Q000031:analogs & derivatives* / Q000627:therapeutic use*; D005260:Female; D005938:Glucocorticoids / Q000627:therapeutic use*; D006801:Humans; D017676:Lichen Planus, Oral / Q000188:drug therapy*; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D017063:Outcome Assessment, Health Care / Q000379:methods*; D010147:Pain Measurement; D011788:Quality of Life; D015203:Reproducibility of Results; D018434:Sickness Impact Profile; D011795:Surveys and Questionnaires
chemical_list: D005938:Glucocorticoids; C028994:betamethasone sodium phosphate; D001623:Betamethasone