title: Novel therapies for oral lichen planus.
abstract: Oral lichen planus (OLP) is a chronic mucocutaneous disorder commonly found in middle-aged women. Despite the progress in research and advance in knowledge on OLP, a successful management is still difficult to achieve. The main aim of OLP treatment is to control the symptoms of the affected patients. Steroids and other immunosuppressive drugs have been recommended and widely used in the treatment of OLP. Topical corticosteroids are the mainstay of OLP treatment, but strong evidence on their effectiveness is lacking. The effectiveness of alternative ways of managing OLP has been recently reported. Topical aloe vera, topical pimecrolimus and oral curcuminoids are the most promising of the new treatment modalities. Other interesting modalities are topically applied thalidomide and amlexanox. Nevertheless, the careful assessment between the risks and benefits of these drugs is crucial and larger and well-conducted trials need to confirm the above encouraging results.
authors.affiliation: Oral Medicine Department, Faculty of Dentistry, Chulalongkorn University, Bangkok, Thailand.
authors.forename: Kobkan
authors.initials: K
authors.lastname: Thongprasom
authors.forename: Chanwit
authors.initials: C
authors.lastname: Prapinjumrune
authors.forename: Marco
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Carrozzo
mesh_terms: D000305:Adrenal Cortex Hormones / Q000627:therapeutic use; D000504:Aloe; D003474:Curcumin / Q000627:therapeutic use; D006801:Humans; D007166:Immunosuppressive Agents / Q000627:therapeutic use; D017676:Lichen Planus, Oral / Q000188:drug therapy*; D008517:Phytotherapy / Q000379:methods; D028321:Plant Preparations / Q000627:therapeutic use; D016559:Tacrolimus / Q000031:analogs & derivatives / Q000627:therapeutic use
chemical_list: D000305:Adrenal Cortex Hormones; D007166:Immunosuppressive Agents; D028321:Plant Preparations; C117268:pimecrolimus; D003474:Curcumin; D016559:Tacrolimus
keywords: aloe vera; curcuminoids; oral lichen planus; pimecrolimus; treatment