Abstract
Objective The association between hepatitis C virus (HCV) and oral lichen planus (OLP) is well known, but the association with periodontal disease has been reported less often. The purpose of this study was to investigate the effects of periodontal bacteria and OLP lesions before and after HCV elimination. Subjects and Methods. The subjects were four OLP patients (mean age 72.5 years) with HCV infection. Six types of periodontal bacteria (Aggregatibacter actinomycetemcomitans, Prevotella intermedia, Porphyromonas gingivalis, Tannerella forsythia, Treponema denticola, and Fusobacterium nucleatum) were quantified in saliva, and changes in OLP were examined before and after elimination of HCV by antiviral therapy. Biochemical blood tests also were performed. Results The total number of periodontal bacteria, the numbers of P. gingivalis, T. forsythia, T. denticola, and F. nucleatum, and the risk of presenting with the red-complex bacteria (P. gingivalis, T. forsythia, and T.denticola), leading to periodontal disease progression, decreased after HCV elimination. OLP disappeared in three of the four patients and decreased in the other after sustained virological responses (SVRs). Conclusion HCV elimination not only improved OLP lesions but also reduced the number of periodontal pathogens and the amount of red-complex periodontal pathogens.
Highlights
Hepatitis C virus (HCV) infection affects approximately 71 million people worldwide and is a leading cause of chronic liver disease and liver cancer deaths [1, 2]
In Japan, liver cancer accounts for about 30,000 deaths per year, 80% of which are caused by hepatitis B virus (HBV) and HCV [3]
We have reported that Oral lichen planus (OLP) can be cured when HCV is eliminated by antiviral treatments, such as with interferon (IFN) [15] and direct-acting antiviral agents (DAAs) [16,17,18,19]
Summary
Hepatitis C virus (HCV) infection affects approximately 71 million people worldwide and is a leading cause of chronic liver disease and liver cancer deaths [1, 2]. In Japan, liver cancer accounts for about 30,000 deaths per year, 80% of which are caused by hepatitis B virus (HBV) and HCV [3]. HCV-infected patients in Japan are generally older than in other countries and are characterized by a high proportion of patients with complications such as cirrhosis and liver cancer [4, 5]. HCV infection is known to cause manifestations other than liver disease [9]. We have reported that OLP can be cured when HCV is eliminated by antiviral treatments, such as with interferon (IFN) [15] and DAA [16,17,18,19]. Achieving a sustained virological response (SVR) has been shown to reduce liver cancer deaths and liver disease-related deaths and extrahepatic mortality [20, 21]
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