Objective: The objective of this study was to evaluate the efficacy and safety of short-term and topical application of amlexanox paste in the treatment of erosive oral lichen planus (EOLP).
Study design: A randomized, positive-controlled clinical trial was conducted from September 1 to December 31, 2009. Thirty-eight patients with EOLP received amlexanox paste (n = 20) or dexamethasone paste (n = 18) for 7 days. Outcome measures included size of erosive area and visual analog scale (VAS) scores.
Results: After 7 days of treatment, both groups showed significant reduction in erosive area and VAS scores (P < .001). There was no difference between groups in the reduction of erosive area (P = .937) and VAS scores (P = .161). None of the patients had severe adverse reactions.
Conclusions: Topical application of amlexanox appeared as effective as dexamethasone in the treatment of EOLP and no serious side effects were found in this pilot study.
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