Oral lichen planus treated with tacrolimus 0.1%.

Oral lichen planus (OLP) is considered a chronic autoimmune inflammatory disease and its presence may be related to increased emotional stress. The clinical relevance of OLP is the possibility of developing a squamous cell carcinoma, the etiology of which is still unknown. The aim of this study is to treat OLP lesions resistant to conventional treatment with corticosteroids, using topical tacrolimus 0.1% (Protopic(®)) twice a day for a period of eight weeks. Fifteen patients were selected who had filled out a history form and a visual analog scale for pain before and after treatment. All patients underwent an initial biopsy to diagnose the disease and another at the end of the treatment period to evaluate the effect of the medication on the infiltrate. A weekly check was carried out, observing the clinical appearance, pain symptoms and occurrence of side effects which, where present, were mild and transient. The results showed twelve patients (80%) with total or nearly total remission of pain symptoms and lesions, two patients (13.33%) showed clearer lesions and only one patient (6.67%) had no change in clinical symptoms or pain. Histopathological analysis showed OLP had a moderate or strong regression in twelve patients (80%) and an absent or mild regression in three patients (20%). Based on these results, it was concluded that tacrolimus 0.1% (Protopic(®)) is a safe and effective medication that improves the clinical appearance of the lesion, reduces pain as well as the histopathological features of OLP.