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UVB phototherapy improved patients with oral lichen planus

Results of an Israeli study indicated that localized ultraviolet B phototherapy is a safe, effective treatment for erosive oral lichen planus.

The study included 14 patients (64% women) who had been diagnosed with erosive oral lichen planus (OLP), a chronic inflammatory disease. Each patient’s OLP had failed to respond to previous forms of therapy, including topical corticosteroids and intralesional methylprednisolone acetate injections.

The patients ranged in age from 48 to 83 years, and the average OLP duration was 6.5 years (range 0.75-24 years).

Each participant received three phototherapy sessions per week for 8 weeks using an ultraviolet (UV) light system (TheraLight UV 120-2) with a flexible fiber guide that enabled direct access to a patient’s mouth.

The study lasted 45 weeks; its goal was to achieve efficacy after 8 weeks of UVB phototherapy.

At an average of 6 weeks (range 4-8 weeks), nine of the 14 patients had achieved complete response (CR). In this study, CR was defined as ≥80% reduction from baseline evaluation in affected areas of the mouth. Partial response (PR) was a 50% to 80% reduction; no response was <50% reduction.

Six weeks after discontinuing their maintenance regimens at week 37), disease recurred in four patients who had previously achieved CR.

Five patients had PR at week 8, and two of those patients achieved CR at 12 weeks. Two of the patients in the PR group withdrew from the study after 8 weeks.

Given the CR achieved by two patients at the 12-week point, investigators planned to extend the primary endpoint for future studies to 12 weeks.

“We showed that local UVB phototherapy may be a promising treatment modality for patients with erosive OLP … and could be used as a steroid-sparing agent,” researchers concluded.

The researchers said larger studies and longer follow-up periods are needed to confirm their findings.

Disclosure: The researchers report no relevant financial disclosures.