Does anybody know exactly what the difference is betweek Lichen Sclerosus and Lichen planus of the vulva, because its not really all that clear to me.
I have Lichen Planus in my mouth and Lichen Sclerosis 'at the bottom'. It seems, as I experience it, that the Lichen Planus in my mouth is simpler to control and is not so agressive as the Lichen Sclerosis down below. That's how far my knowledge goes. Perhaps of a little bit of help.
Hanny's right, plus you can have Lichen Planus inside the vagina, where LS never goes. LS can invade the urethra, but not up the vagina.
Hi Guppy007,
I far from an expert only someone with LS myself, but I believe Lichen Sclerosus appears mostly in the genatalia, perineum, breast etc areas. On appearance it is usually white dots or white patches but can also be red spots or rash looking, also think believe that it is less severe than Lichen Planus.
Lichen Planus from photos viewed online appears to be red spots, plaques or patches which are much larger and wide spread and which appear to be not just in the genetalia areas, but can appear or cover any part of the body and be much more severe. It is confusing as they both look very similar in appearance. A good Dermatologist or specialist in Vulva disorders/diseases would beable to provide more information.
I'm not sure but I think people can have both at the same time as I have LS but I'm losing my toe nails which may be LP yet to have the toe nails diagnosed.
Hi Guppy,
I have both LS and LP, vulva and anus. Like you, I have never really understood the difference and am unable to look for myself, so count on my dermatologist to do this for me. I have assumed that the itching comes from LS and the sores are LP, but I may well be completely wrong. I understand that one can get rid of LP but not LS, but there are women on this forum who have proved this theory wrong, so I am still in the dark. Best of luck to you.
Hi, Thanks everyone..I have oral lichen planus, lichen planus on my back and lichen schlerosus down below.. I think I now know what the difference is after reading your replies and my own research. It seems that when you have Vaginal Lichen planus you can end up with red internal sores, whereas with lichen sclerosus that doesnt really happen, but with both you can get the awful white patches, so all in all I think that probably makes Vaginal Lichen planus the worst of the two.
Hello Guppy
In the UK at my local hospital, they treat LS with a consultation with the Gynae and one's own GP devising the correct management procedure with Clobetasol and Oestrogen. If one has Vulval LP (confirmed by biopsy), then you are put under the management of the vulva clinic and one's own GP. I think this is primarily because LP of the vulva is a trickier disorder to manage. This is what my gynae consultant said when he referred me to the vulva spcialist because my biopsy showed LP as well as LS. So now I will have the micorscopic examination of the vulva from the specialist clinic but what they are going to be looking for I don't know.
Hi, the problem is that not much is known about L Sclerosus AND vaginal L Planus, there is simply not a great deal of research done, and so we rely on places like this site and the one or two doctors that specialize in these conditions..this is what I have just read...
Erosive lichen planus is characterized by glassy, bright red erosions and ulceration involving the vulva and vagina. Like lichen sclerosus, erosive lichen planus may cause severe scarring of the vulva. However, unlike lichen sclerosus which does not affect the vagina, erosive lichen planus can cause severe erosions and scarring in the vagina and can lead to obliteration of the vagina"
I guess like yourself I may have a bit of both, bearing in mind that it states that 25% of women with oral lichen planus have vaginal lichen planus,
Here is the link to the article.