Complications after Implant Therapy in Patients with Oral Lichen Planus

Objectives: The aim of this prospective controlled study was to evaluate the number of visits to the office due to patient's complaints, patient's perception about improvement after treatment and overall satisfaction in patients diagnosed with oral lichen planus (OLP), compared with a control group with no mucosal lesions, after implant therapy. Methods: Two groups, including 20 patients diagnosed with OLP and 20 controls, received 61 and 66 implants during the years 2003–2009. Clinical exam along the follow-up (mean, 68.5 and 66.8 months, respectively), a VAS scale to measure the patients confidence and satisfaction with the procedure at final examination, a personal questionnaire and the Oral Health Impact Profile Short form (OHIP-14) to measure the quality of life, were used to evaluate the patients. Results: Patients in the OLP group (OLPG) attended much more frequently to the office after the implant and restorative procedure than those in the control group (CG) (p<0.0001). Peri-implant mucosal pain, peri-implant bleeding, and erosive/ ulcerative lesions around the fixtures were the conditions more frequently observed. Peri-implant lesions similar to those appearing in cases of desquamative gingivitis were observed in patients with lichen planus. Both groups of patients showed a high level of acceptance of the implant treatment. Both groups of participants had statistically significant improvements in life quality at the final examination when intra-group analysis was performed. Conclusions: Despite the limitations of the small sample size, it seems that patients with OLP display more soft tissue complications and subjective complaints after the implant procedure. These patients significantly increase their oral related quality of life after the procedure showing a high level of acceptance of this treatment. Source of funding: Nobel Biocare S.A. provided partial support for this study through a contract signed with the Complutense University.