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Update on treatments for erosive vulvovaginal lichen planus
Author(s) -
Dunaway Spencer,
Tyler Kelly,
Kaffenberger Jessica
Publication year - 2020
Publication title -
international journal of dermatology
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 0.677
H-Index - 93
eISSN - 1365-4632
pISSN - 0011-9059
DOI - 10.1111/ijd.14692
Subject(s) - medicine , tacrolimus , dermatology , calcineurin , methotrexate , first line , disease , intensive care medicine , surgery , transplantation
Vulvovaginal lichen planus (VVLP) is a debilitating disease that causes significant pain and psychological distress. Management is made difficult by the chronic course of the disease and its resistance to treatment. While topical steroids have been accepted as the first‐line treatment, they fail to achieve symptomatic control in approximately 40% of patients. Second‐line therapies include other topical treatments such as calcineurin inhibitors, systemic therapies including oral steroids, methotrexate, mycophenolate mofetil, biologics, and tacrolimus, and procedural options including surgery and dilation, photodynamic therapy, and ultrasound. This review provides an overview of the current treatments and explores the level of evidence supporting each of them.