Arunima Dhabal; Jayanta Kumar Barua; Kingshuk Chatterjee; Ananya Chandra; Sumana Khan; Manab Kumar Ghosh; Saswati Halder
Abstract
Background: Lichen planus (LP) is a chronic inflammatorydisorder involving the skin, mucosa, hair, and nails. Previousreports have shown a possible association between LP andmetabolic derangement, leading to increased cardiovascular riskamong these patients. Our study aimed to assess the prevalenceof ...
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Background: Lichen planus (LP) is a chronic inflammatorydisorder involving the skin, mucosa, hair, and nails. Previousreports have shown a possible association between LP andmetabolic derangement, leading to increased cardiovascular riskamong these patients. Our study aimed to assess the prevalenceof metabolic syndrome (MetS) and its components in LP patientsand to study their relationship with mucosal involvement in LP.Methods: We conducted a cross-sectional observational study of123 LP patients. Demographic and clinical data were obtained,and evaluation was done for the presence of abdominal obesity,hypertension, hyperglycemia, and dyslipidemia. MetS wasdiagnosed according to the modified National CholesterolEducation Program: Adult Treatment Panel III (NCEP-ATP III)criteria for the South Asian population. Data analysis was doneusing appropriate statistical methods.Results: The prevalence of MetS in LP patients was 31%. The meanage of LP patients having MetS was considerably higher thanthose without MetS (44.8 ± 13.6 vs. 33.3 ± 15.9 years; P = 0.0002).Although statistically insignificant, female patients and patients withmucosal involvement showed a higher prevalence of MetS. Centralobesity, hypertension, hyperglycemia, and hypertriglyceridemiawere more prevalent in mucosal LP patients than in those withoutmucosal lesions, with hyperglycemia having a significantly higherprevalence in mucosal LP (41% vs. 18%; P = 0.015).Conclusion: Incre ased age, female gender, and mucosalinvolvement are important predictors of concurrent metabolicderangement in LP patients. Thus, these patients should bescreened for the presence of MetS and its components.