Oral manifestation in inflammatory bowel disease: a review

• Published in: World journal of gastroenterology : WJG Vol. 19; no. 46; pp. 8571 - 8579
• Main Authors: Lankarani, Kamran B, Sivandzadeh, Gholam Reza, Hassanpour, Shima
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: United States Baishideng Publishing Group Co., Limited 14.12.2013
• Subjects: Colitis, Ulcerative - complications; Colitis, Ulcerative - diagnosis; Colitis, Ulcerative - therapy; Crohn Disease - complications; Crohn Disease - diagnosis; Crohn Disease - therapy; Diagnosis, Differential; Humans; Mouth Diseases - diagnosis; Mouth Diseases - etiology; Mouth Diseases - therapy; Predictive Value of Tests; Prognosis; Review; Risk Factors; Severity of Illness Index; Aphthous stomatitis; Inflammatory bowel disease; Cobblestoning; Mucogingivitis; Pyostomatitis vegetans; Oral manifestation; Extra-intestinal manifestations; Crohn’s disease; Ulcerative colitis
• DOI: 10.3748/wjg.v19.i46.8571
• ISSN: 1007-9327

Inflammatory bowel diseases (IBDs), including Crohn's disease (CD) and ulcerative colitis, not only affect the intestinal tract but also have an extraintestinal involvement within the oral cavity. These oral manifestations may assist in the diagnosis and the monitoring of disease activity, whilst ignoring them may lead to an inaccurate diagnosis and useless and expensive workups. Indurated tag-like lesions, cobblestoning, and mucogingivitis are the most common specific oral findings encountered in CD cases. Aphthous stomatitis and pyostomatitis vegetans are among non-specific oral manifestations of IBD. In differential diagnosis, side effects of drugs, infections, nutritional deficiencies, and other inflammatory conditions should also be considered. Treatment usually involves managing the underlying intestinal disease. In severe cases with local symptoms, topical and/or systemic steroids and immunosuppressive drugs might be used.