Gingival involvement in patients with autoimmune mucocutaneous diseases

Growing evidence indicates that the incidence of autoimmune diseases has remarkably increased in recent decades. In many cases, oral manifestations are the first signs of autoimmune diseases. The purpose of this study was to determine the frequency of gingival involvement in patients with autoimmune mucocutaneous diseases referred to Isfahan Dental School during a thirty-year period (1989-2018).

In this cross-sectional descriptive-analytical study, the data of 848 patients with autoimmune mucocutaneous diseases, referred to Pathology Department of Isfahan Dental School from 1989 to 2018, were reviewed. The obtained data were fed into SPSS-22 software and analyzed by central and dispersion indices and one-way ANOVA. P<0.05 was considered as statistically significant.

The most common autoimmune mucocutaneous disease was lichen planus (n =556) and the least common was erythema multiforme (n =10). The highest gingival involvement was related to pemphigoid disease (40.8%) and the least gingival involvement was seen in erythema multiforme (10%).

Considering the high frequency of gingival involvement in autoimmune diseases and the significance of its diagnosis, dentists can play a pivotal role in the diagnosis and early treatment of patients with autoimmune mucocutaneous disease.