[Oral lesions associated to immunosuppression in kidney transplant patients]

The use of immunosuppresive drugs in patients with kidney transplantation (KT) could influence the development of oral lesions (OL). The aim of this study was to establish the OL prevalence in a group of KT patients, and explore some possible associations of their presence.

Cross-sectional study. We examined the oral mucosa (OM) of 190 KT patients searching for OL. Our findings were analyzed by multiple logistic regression, and possible associations between OLs and several variables (demographic, clinical, of immunosuppressor drugs, and of lab results) were explored.

Overall OL prevalence was 28.4 %; 15.8 % had oral candidiasis (which was more prevalent in diabetic cases, p = 0.002), herpes simplex 7.4 %, hairy leukoplakia 5.3 %, oral verruca vulgaris 3.7 %, and OM ulcers 2.6 %. The combination of cyclosporin A + azathioprine + prednisone had the highest OL prevalence. Hairy leukoplakia was related to a lower total leukocyte count, p = 0.006, and oral verruca vulgaris to a cadaveric KT donor.

Oral candidiasis was the most prevalent OL, and it was more prevalent in diabetic cases. The association of hairy leukoplakia to a lower total leukocyte count might agree with previous reports classifying it as an immunosuppression marker.