Curcumin Versus Corticosteroids for Symptomatic Oral Lichen Planus: A Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis

The management of oral lichen planus (OLP) is challenging, with no definitive cure available. This systematic review and meta-analysis aimed to assess the efficacy of curcumin in managing OLP.

A comprehensive search of PubMed, Scopus, Web of Science, and Google Scholar was conducted for relevant clinical trials published up to March 31, 2025. All clinical trials comparing the efficacy of curcumin to corticosteroids were included. A meta-analysis was conducted on studies with available numerical data to assess the efficacy of curcumin relative to the control group.

Eleven clinical trials, involving 499 OLP patients, were included in this review, with nine studies were incorporated into the meta-analysis. All studies reported curcumin to be efficacious in alleviating the signs and symptoms of OLP. Pooled data showed significantly better efficacy of curcumin in reducing pain at 1 week (SMD, -0.70; 95% CI, -1.33, -0.07; p = 0.03; I² = 66%) compared with corticosteroids. However, no significant differences were observed between the two groups at the 2-, 4-, and 12-week follow-ups. Additionally, curcumin and corticosteroids demonstrated comparable efficacy in clinical improvement of lesions across different time points.

The available evidence suggests that curcumin has promising effects in managing OLP. However, due to methodological limitations, including significant heterogeneity among the studies and a high risk of bias in most of them, further well-designed studies with adequate follow-up periods are needed.