Salivary levels of interleukin-6 levels in oral lichen planus

Objectives:Oral lichen planus (OLP) is chronic inflammatory disease of the oral mucosa, presentnig in various clinical forms. Our study was undertaken to quantify the salivary levels of pro-inflammatory interleukin-6 (IL-6) in the reticular and the erosive forms of OLP, compared with age-matched healthy control volunteers. Methods: Whole saliva from 40 patients with active lesions of OLP, as well as from healthy persons, was investigated for the presence of IL-6 by enzyme immunoassay. Results: Salivary IL-6 levels were significantly increased in patients with OLP in comparison with healthy subjects. The presence of IL-6 showed positive correlation to clnical forms of OLP, being significantly higher in the erosive/atrophic type than in the reticular type of disease. Conclusion: Saliva has more diagnostic value that is generally appreciated and has promise as an aid in diagnosis of systemic and especially oral pathologies. Salivary IL-6 analysis may be a useful diagnostic tool and a potential prognostic marker in OLP. This research was supported by a grant from the Ministry of Science and Technology (0062058), Republic Croatia