Is lichen planus connected to autoimmune conditions?

@njh516 I’m really sorry that you have OLP but don’t have a doctor or it. I’m sure the dentist is great but I don’t know whether they prescribe the right medication for it.
You can also contact one of these organizations. They monitor autoimmune diseases and also keep a list of doctors who treat the disease.
NORD. National Organization for Rare Diseases. https://rarediseases.org/
GARD. Genetic and Rare Disease organization. https://rarediseases.info.nih.gov/
I hope you’ll get some appropriate help soon
May I ask what your dentist treats your OLP with?

Most oral lichen planus is treated by dermatologists. Often the treatments
are off label use of drugs frequently used on skin areas. Regular follow ups
at intervals are necessary if the condition is chronically active. At times a biopsy of the lesions are necessary.

Thank you soooooo much for your reply and the resources. The truth is, she didn’t have much to offer beside the suggestion I see rheumatology because they treat autoimmune disease here. She had me using Clōsys mouth rinse after brushing, recommended a Waterpick, Paradontex TP, BioGaia an oral probiotic, Oracoat XyliMelts for dry mouth at night.

I stuck with her recommended routine twice to three times a day. She and the hygienist said they thought I had progressed to periodontal disease between my 6 month visits because I had gotten so much worse. My mouth was on fire, bleeding, gum line beefy red. I had bad sores in one quadrant of my mouth. I could barely brush as it would hurt so bad and bleed more. They recommended beginning deep cleaning and scaling and scheduled me to begin asap.

I got scared and made an appointment with a nearby periodontist. She said what I was having was a severe exacerbation of the OLP and it was not periodontal disease. She said any deep pockets would tighten up once the inflammation subsided. She couldn’t rule out thrush. She said this exacerbation was a result of stress. She was correct, I’m under a lot of stress d/t illness of my husband and adult son. On top of that son in law calls and asks for lots of financial help d/t a life changing screwup by him.

As a nurse I asked the periodontist to throw as much treatment my way as she could think of. She prescribed
Clobetasol, a potent topical corticosteroid for the skin (which I’d used in the past for my vitiligo) and instructed me to rub some on my gums. She also ordered Clotrimazole 10mg Lozenge for the possible thrush, 5 lozenges daily x 10 days. Well I got some dental trays and smeared them up with the Clobetasol once daily for about 30 minutes and lastly. She also encouraged me to find a rheumatologist who could treat the OLP. No luck there. I came across an article about light therapy. So I bought an appliance (like a bite block) for my mouth that emits red and blue LED light to encourage healing. This combination all helped tremendously. Oh I also bought a TB head for my Sonicare that looks like a marshmallow. That helped me tolerated toothbrush in a bit better. All of this since mid March.

So that is my entire story. There must be someone that is an expert in this disease somewhere in Florida and I need to find that person.

Again, I’m very grateful for the links and I will definitely look there next for an expert. Thank you so much for caring enough to provide the comment and links.

Derm is what I thought of too. It’s a place to start and easily available. Thank you for your input.

So many people suffer from high levels of inflammation in many different areas of the body…OLP is just one area for me…I focused on whole body inflammation control…diet, supplements, and getting rid of products that irritate…get rid of anything with dye and fragrance, get rid of anything acidic in food, popcorn is a big no or anything that gets stuck in my gums…I changed my toothpaste to Happy Tooth, I buy on Amazon.
I then added Low Dose Naltrexone, 4.5 mg, which was a massive help! No flares in almost a year!

@njh516 Wow! You’ve really taken charge of your OLP!!
Have you tried a comprehensive medical center or a university medical center? My husband called a university med center because the doctors here really didn’t know what they were doing. We really didn’t know much about the university hospital but at 6:30 one morning off we went! Best thing we ever did!
Try it. You’ve got nothing to lose!

What did they do for him that was helpful or different?

I don’t have a university hospital nearby but we have Advent Health in Orlando or Orlando Regional Medical Center within an hours drive.

@njh516 I’m not sure of the question you’re asking, but, to clarify, my husband drove me to the hospital !
You can try Orlando RegionalMed Center! The doctors at a med center are doing research so look for patients who have a challenging problem. Call them and ask to speak to someone in the rheumatology department. And then, we see what happens!

Oh, sorry.I misunderstood. I thought he was the patient.

I am currently dealing with OLP or something similiar (no one can seem to agree...) however my PCP was on the nose to figure out its inflammation, not anything that I've been suggested otherwise (vitamin deficiency, trauma bites, food allergy, oral herpes..)..

She prescribed a dexamethasone .5mg/50mg steroid mouth swish. IT WAS GREAT. It stopped the pain, the itching, the inflammation, and started to heal the tongue ulcers.

My PCP suspects it's a rheumatology symptom, I'm being tested for systemic lupus erythematosus. I will check in with my dentist to possibly have the tongue ulcers biopsied for confirmation, but that's my story with OLP and autoimmune issues.