Clinical and Histopathological Analysis of Inflammatory Lesions on the Lips

Shin, Moon Seub; Lee, Un Ha; Park, Hyun Su; Park, Hai Jin

Abstract

BACKGROUND
Inflammatory labial lesions are quite common in dermatology. However, a few studies have been performed regarding the clinical and histopathological findings of inflammatory labial diseases.
OBJECTIVE
The purpose of this study was to investigate the clinical and histopathological features of inflammatory labial diseases.
METHODS
We retrospectively reviewed the data of 48 patients who underwent biopsy for inflammatory labial lesions between June 2005 and December 2012. Clinical features and histopathological findings of the lesions were investigated, and they were compared to each other for differential diagnosis.
RESULTS
The most frequent inflammatory labial diseases were actinic cheilitis (25%), oral lichen planus (23%), plasma cell cheilitis (23%), oral lichenoid lesion (17%), and eczema (12%). Most of the labial lesions were located on the lower lip (87%). We found a broad overlap in the clinical features of lesions with each other, and in many cases, clinical impressions were inconsistent with their final diagnosis. Histopathologically, the degree of eosinophilic infiltrates in actinic cheilitis was comparable to those in eczema. Oral lichen planus showed orthokeratotic hyperkeratosis rather than parakeratosis, and oral lichenoid lesion displayed more frequent perivascular and deep inflammatory cell infiltrates than oral lichen planus.
CONCLUSION
The diagnosis of inflammatory labial diseases may be challenging, because inflammatory labial diseases often show similar clinical features and have a broad overlap in histological features. Therefore, clinico-pathologic correlation is necessary to confirm the diagnosis and for proper management.