Assessment of oral health- related quality of life in patients with lichen planus during the course of treatment, using “Chronic Oral Mucosal Disease Questionnaire”

Objective: The aim of this study was to assess the oral health related quality of life in patients with oral lichen planus, using a Chronic Oral Mucosal Diseases Questionnaire (COMDQ) during a course of standard medical treatment. Material and Methods: In this experimental study, fifteen patients with oral lichen planus   were entered the study and the COMDQ (a self reported questionnaire assessing different aspects of quality of life in individuals with chronic oral mucosal diseases), ), was used to assess the level of “Pain and functional limitation”, “Medication and treatment”, “Social emotional” and “Patient support” during the course of standard treatment. A data collection form including demographic information, type and location of the lesions, patients’ symptoms and level of healing process was completed.  Patients were evaluated weekly during four weeks of treatment and COMDQ scores were documented. Data were analyzed, using ANOVA and Friedman statistical tests. Results: The mean score of the COMDQ questionnaire in lichen planus patients who completed the course of treatment, showed significant improvement (P < 0.001) after each week of therapy. Oral symptoms and the healing process of oral lesions showed improvement without any statistically significant changes among different weeks of therapy. “Pain and functional limitation”, “Medication and treatment” and “Patient Support” improved significantly during the treatment period (P<001); however, the “Social and emotional” aspect did not show significant changes over the course of medical management. Conclusion: Oral health-related quality of life in patients with oral lichen planus improved significantly during the course of medical treatment. KeywordsOral Lichen Planus; COMDQ; Quality of Life; Oral Health.