Skip to main page content
U.S. flag

An official website of the United States government

Dot gov

The .gov means it’s official.
Federal government websites often end in .gov or .mil. Before sharing sensitive information, make sure you’re on a federal government site.

Https

The site is secure.
The https:// ensures that you are connecting to the official website and that any information you provide is encrypted and transmitted securely.

Access keys NCBI Homepage MyNCBI Homepage Main Content Main Navigation
Review
. 2018;43(1):103-108.
doi: 10.5114/ceji.2018.74880. Epub 2018 Mar 30.

Interleukin-6 levels in the serum and saliva of patients with oral lichen planus compared with healthy controls: a meta-analysis study

Hamid Reza Mozaffari  1 , Roohollah Sharifi  2 , Masoud Sadeghi  3   4
Affiliations
Review

Interleukin-6 levels in the serum and saliva of patients with oral lichen planus compared with healthy controls: a meta-analysis study

Hamid Reza Mozaffari et al. Cent Eur J Immunol. 2018.

Abstract

Interleukin-6 (IL-6) is a cytokine that contributes to the pathogenesis of oral lichen planus (OLP). The aim of this meta-analysis study is the evaluation of IL-6 levels in the serum and saliva of patients with OLP compared with healthy controls. We searched the studies in 5 databases: PubMed/Medline, Scopus, ScienceDirect, Web of Science, and Cochrane Library, from 1983 to Oct 31, 2016. Eleven studies were analysed for the meta-analysis study. The reviewers independently evaluated the quality of each included study using the Newcastle-Ottawa Quality Assessment Scale (NOS). A random-effects meta-analysis, using Comprehensive Meta-Analysis software version 2.0, was used to reflect the variation in studies. Heterogeneity between estimates was evaluated by the Q and I2 statistics and for the Q statistic; heterogeneity was considered for p < 0.1. Eleven studies included 529 OLP patients and 333 healthy controls. The review identified two different biomaterials used for IL-6 assays: saliva and serum. The mean quality score of eleven studies was 7 (high quality). Estimates pooled from 6 studies showed significant high saliva IL-6 levels in OLP patients compared with healthy controls (the standardised difference in means (SDM) = 4.534, 95% CI = 1.915-7.153, p = 0.001). Also, estimates pooled from 7 studies showed significantly high serum IL-6 levels in OLP patients compared with healthy controls (SDM = 1.482, 95% CI = 0.524-2.439, p = 0.002). The higher levels of IL-6 in saliva compared with serum suggest that measurement of this marker in saliva may be more useful than serum for diagnostic and therapeutic aims.

Keywords: interleukin-6; lichen planus; saliva; serum.

PubMed Disclaimer

Conflict of interest statement

The authors declare no conflict of interests.

Figures

Fig. 1
Fig. 1
Flow chart of the study selection processes to identify studies eligible for the systematic review
Fig. 2
Fig. 2
Forest plot of random-effect of interleukin-6 levels of saliva in OLP groups compared with healthy controls; Std diff – standard difference, OLP – oral lichen planus
Fig. 3
Fig. 3
Forest plot of random-effect of interleukin-6 levels of serum in OLP groups compared with healthy controls; Std diff – standard difference, OLP – oral lichen planus
Fig. 4
Fig. 4
Funnel plot of random-effect of interleukin-6 of (A) saliva and (B) serum in oral lichen planus groups compared with healthy controls; Std diff – standard difference
See this image and copyright information in PMC

References

    1. Abdel-Haq A, Kusnierz-Cabala B, Darczuk D, et al. Interleukin-6 and neopterin levels in the serum and saliva of patients with Lichen planus and oral Lichen planus. J Oral Pathol Med. 2014;43:734–739. - PubMed
    1. Gu GM, Martin MD, Darveau RP, et al. Oral and serum IL-6 levels in oral lichen planus patients. Oral Surg Oral Med Oral Pathol Oral Radiol Endod. 2004;98:673–678. - PubMed
    1. Mozaffari HR, Rahmani M, Rezaei F, et al. Evaluation of oral lichen planus frequency in patients referred to pathology centers of Kermanshah city, during 2008 to 2011. Sch J App Med Sci. 2016;4:2200–2202.
    1. Sugerman PB, Savage NW, Walsh LJ, et al. The pathogenesis of oral lichen planus. Crit Rev Oral Biol Med. 2002;13:350–365. - PubMed
    1. Goel S, Marwah A, Kaushik S, et al. Role of serum interleukin-6 in deciding therapy for multidrug resistant oral lichen planus. J Clin Exp Dent. 2015;7:e477–482. - PMC - PubMed

LinkOut - more resources