does anyone else have lichen planus in their mouths? it is just one of the several autoimmune disease i have. i am interested in hearing how it manifests itself for other people. thanks.

Hi there, Claujah. I have lichen planus. I first got it back in 1978...I suffered with it for a few years, then it finally got better. I had it on my legs, back, stomach, palms of my hands, feet. I might have had it in my mouth back then; but I'm not sure. Once it got better, I never had a problem with it (but I always retained a little bit of it, but it never bothered me). The past few months I have gotten it back again. I had several white areas of it in my mouth....its on my chest, stomach, back, legs. I have to be careful about scratching my itches now...I'm liable to break open a lesion, and it'll bleed. When I first developed it, I was in the US Army. I was prescribed every cream you can imagine...nothing worked. Since my reaccurance this time, I haven't sought medical treatment....the lesions in my mouth seem to be better...I don't feel them with my tongue so much now. How are you treating your Lichen Planus? I've been worried about the lesions in my mouth, but am not sure what would help...has some treatment worked for you? I'd appreciate knowing what might help...good luck to you...Debbie
P.S. One thing that seems to help, is to try and never scratch the lesions. If you can do this, they over-all won't itch so bad.

hmmmm.....first, thanks for your reply. my lichen planus is only in my mouth, specifically it affects the gums around the eye teeth and back a few....i will notice the white patchy stuff on the roof of my mouth and then, within a couple of days, the gums in these areas are red and incredibly sensitive, and they bleed when i floss. i've been to an oral surgeon, periodontist, the whole nine yards, and it's not gingivitis or periodontal disease or any of that....and it is one big pain in my a--! well, not literally ofcourse, as it is only in my mouth! the peridex mouthwash is a nightmare, prescribed by my dentist...it destroys my sense of taste completely. so i just use peroxyl mouthwash every now and then, and sometimes a very weak listerine/water combination, to knock off the bacteria. this is a most hateful condition!

Hi, I have lichen planus in my mouth and on my legs. The insides of both cheeks and under my tongue are covered. It is very painful and I can not eat anything spicy or I will almost be in tears from the pain. My doctor prescribed something called Kenalog/Orabse for my mouth. It is very thick and gritty and you just put it on at night. I think it helps but to be honest, I only used it a couple of times because I thought it made my teeth very sensitive, maybe it was just me. I also heard a dermatologist on tv talking about something called Olus foam for the mouth. I do know that you have a risk of getting mouth cancer if you don't take care of the lichen planus.
The lesions on my legs itch terribly. The strange thing is right after I got this, I got all kinds of joint and muscle pain too. I have been tested for just about every autoimmune disease there is but they haven't come up with anything else.

Hi...this Lichen Planus is such an odd disease. The lesions in my mouth are getting smaller. The first time I came down with it, I was in torment, the lesions itched so much. At the time I was in the Army. I remember the terrible itching on my feet (when I was at work, with boots on!). The Army must have sent me to every dermatologist in the area...I had a drawer full of creams...nothing really helped. This time I have lesions over all lot of my body, and in my mouth; but they don't really bother me. I'll scratch at them sometimes, without thinking. But I don't have the terrible itching I once had. They itch, but I can control scratching them. But this time I'm getting it in my mouth; so its kind of scary. Its awful when its bad. I hope mine stays controllable. I hope both of you get better soon. It can go away (mine did, for years and years). Try not to over stress. I think maybe stress can bring it on. I went through a stressful time, then I suddenly find I've got this Lichen Planus problem back again. So stay calm as possible...good luck to you both...Debbie

oops, sorry I had a typo in my post above. The name of the foam for your mouth is Olux. I haven't tried it but I have heard it works.

uh, i hadn't heard about the connection between lichen planus and oral cancer. by "taking care of the lichen planus" do you mean just using sensitive-type toothpaste and whatever rinse your dentist gives you to use? other than those two things i don't know what else i can do to take care of it.

Well, I guess if you are doing everything your dentist is telling you to do that should be enough, but you might want to check with him/her. I went to an oral surgeon and the paste he gave me for my mouth is a steroid. He said if that did not help, that maybe he would put me on oral (pill) steroids instead. According to him, if you have active lesions in your mouth for a long time, they can turn cancerous.
Good luck.

Here is an aarticle I found regarding Lichen Planus.

[Website removed.]

I think this is what I have in my mouth. I am 44 years old, male. I have no real pain, but I can feel it with my tongue. I have had a dentist say this is what he thinks it is. My wife says it looks like it too.

From what I have seen it is from either stress or allergy. I saw a doctor two doctors and a dentist on this, and one doctor thought it was Stomititis. I think he was wrong. I bought some St Johns Wort.

I saw one site that said it will usually last no longer than 18 months. 18 months? Wow. It aslo said it can last for years. It can lead to oral cancer too.



I found this also

http://content.karger.com/ProdukteDB/produkte.asp?Aktion=ShowAbstract&ProduktNr=224164&Ausgabe=229711&ArtikelNr=74116

Background: Lichen planus (LP) is a common, pruritic, inflammatory mucocutaneous disease. There are several opinions and approaches to the etiopathogenesis of LP. Immunologic mechanisms almost certainly mediate its development. T-cell-mediated immunity plays the major role in triggering the clinical expression of the disease. The cytokines that are produced by lymphocytes also play an important role in the development of LP. Objective: The goal of our study was to investigate the possible role of tumor necrosis factor (TNF-) in the pathogenesis of LP. Methods: Serum TNF- levels were determined with the enzyme-linked immunosorbent sandwich assay method in the sera of 40 patients suffering from LP and in those of 40 healthy controls. Results: The serum levels of TNF- were found to be significantly higher in the patient group compared to the healthy controls (patients: 35.64 ± 9.59 pg/ml, controls: 15.6 ± 3.97 pg/ml, p < 0.001). Conclusion: Our results revealed that TNF- might play a major role in the pathogenesis of LP.



http://healersoftheworld.com/services/goodhealth091701.html



A Sanum homeopathic made in Germany and distributed locally worked well for the patient with oral lichen planus.

I did a search on Google - fumaric acid Lichen Planus oral

It looks like fumaric acid may help. Also, dermatologists may help me more than dentists even though I have it on my cheek. I might make an apointment for a dermo...


Any other suggestions for getting rid of it?

Thanks
Dan

My dentist just told me on Tuesday that I have this, also....and we have no idea why. I just noticed it during the holidays so I haven't had it long, and it's very mild. I have two very small areas on my cheeks that I'm not really concerned about, but my gum was tender on the upper right along the teeth,and it was really sore and tender at the very top of my gum. Well, someone else on here who has this suggested using Biotene toothpaste for mouth irritations. It doesn't contain SLS which most toothpastes do and is what can cause irritation. So after I had my teeth cleaned Tuesday, I bought a tube of this toothpaste and used it Tuesday night; by Wednesday morning my gum was clearing up, and today the soreness is completely gone. Now, my hygienest did use an antibacterial rinse on my gums so I'm sure that helped, too. My I have no doubt in my mind that the Biotene is what helped to clear it up and feel so much better. They also have a mouthrinse which is suppose to be very good, too. I found it at Walmart across the aisle from the regular toothpaste, and I believe it was almost $5.00 but well worth it.

By the way - what is Stomatitis?

By the way - what is Stomatitis?

It is another type of mouth sore. I do not have that one. I was misdiagnosed, I have Lichen Planus. I will try the biotene. I used the mouth wash, but it did not help.

Did it clear up on both cheeks or just the gums?

Just the gum, but now today it's feeling tender again. Makes me wonder if I ate something? The first thing my dentist asked me was if I've used any new medication lately. No. No stress, either. I do have mild asthma, which I was diagnosed with almost two years ago, but I'm not allergic to anything, so I have no idea what triggered the lichen planus. I have two small patchy areas in the back on both sides by my wisdon teeth. I first noticed it only on the right side, and when I looked it up in my medical book, I kind of thought that's what it was, but they said they don't really know what causes it and there's no cure for it, and because it wasn't really bothering me, I forgot about it. Then I noticed one day this real tender spot on my upper gum where the gum meets the cheek. It was during the holidays so I thought I ate something and irritated it, like maybe a nut. Only bothered me for a day, so I forgot about it. Then a couple of weeks ago I noticed that the same area of my upper gum was tender again, but this time when I looked at it, I saw that my gum from the eye tooth on back was also 'irritated' looking. I didn't notice this the first time so I think it's new. I watched it for a few days and it never got any better, so I called my dentist and made an appointment. I had also looked again at the spot by my one wisdom tooth to see if it had changed any, and it hadn't, but because it was still there, I was also checking the other side for any signs of it over there. Honest to God, there was nothing there until the day before my dentist appointment, and that's when I saw it over on that side, too. Almost like it appeared over night, which it may very well have. Honestly, it's my gum that bothers me the most, especially with all this talk on here about mouth cancer. I'm a health nut anyway, and reading about that scares me to death. I know others on here have said they have it on their gum too, which of course makes me feel better, but has anyone been told by a doctor or a dentist that that's definitely what's on their gum? I've read several places that a biopsy is recommended for an accurate diagnosis of it - has anyone on here had that done?

The last doctor I talked to did not want to biopsy. For one thing, it removes tissue. I aslo don't want to make a sore in my mouth.

I have read that Lichen Planus can hit you on both sides. People will get it on both ankles, or both wrists, or both sides of the body. I got mine first on my left cheek. Then a month later I got it on the right. The right side does not seem to be that bad. Neither side hurts, and when it does hurt, it only hurts for a day and then goes away. From what the dentist says about cancer, the pain does not go away. So I guess I will have the doctor look at it once a month until it goes away.

I have gone two days now without pain. When it does hurt, it is not a sharp pain, but a dull one. I have read fumaric acid will cure it. I read one place where a lady had it for 10 years and finally took fumaric acid for 9 months and it went away. Most cases go away within two years. I asked a pharmacist the other day about fumaric acid, and he does not have it. My wife and I saw it on a can of enchilada sauce. Maybe it is a preservative or something.

Mine started early November 2003. About a week before I noticed it, I noticed a gap in between two of my teeth on the left side of my mouth, and needed to start flossing to get meat pieces out from between. Maybe one night I missed a floss and something decomposed in my mouth, I don’t know, it is just speculation. Anyway, one morning (early November) I woke up and my left cheek was really warm. I thought that was strange. It got better and worse every few days.

Please keep me informed and I will do the same. Good luck to both of us.