[Oral lesions in psoriasis]

Area of Science:

• Dermatology
• Oral Medicine
• Clinical Research

Context:

• Limited literature exists on oral manifestations in psoriasis.
• Pustular psoriasis forms are often associated with oral signs, notably geographic tongue.
• The prevalence of fissured tongue in psoriasis patients requires further investigation.

Purpose:

• To determine the types and prevalence of oral signs in a large cohort of psoriasis patients.
• To compare the incidence of oral signs in psoriasis patients versus a control group.
• To investigate the correlation between specific oral signs and different forms of psoriasis.

Summary:

• A study of 400 psoriasis patients and 1000 controls revealed significantly higher rates of fissured tongue (33.2% vs 9.9%) and geographic tongue (7.7% vs 1%) in psoriasis patients.
• Fissured tongue showed a strong correlation with pustular psoriasis (83.3% of pustular psoriasis patients).
• Geographic tongue prevalence in psoriasis patients aligns with existing literature, while fissured tongue prevalence was notably higher than previously reported.

Impact:

• Establishes a strong correlation between psoriasis and fissured/geographic tongue, though not pathognomonic.
• Highlights the increased prevalence of fissured tongue in psoriasis patients.
• Suggests that fissured and geographic tongue are particularly associated with pustular psoriasis, even if patients are often unaware of these signs.