Are your eyes affected by lichen planus?

Posted , 4 users are following.

I was diagnosed with vulval lichen planus a few weeks ago.  I also have sore, itchy eyes, the left worse than the right.  My optician did a dry eye test - tear break up time - which was 2 - 3 seconds, whereas the normal score is 12 seconds, so my eyes are extremely dry.  I am using eye drops and eye ointment prescribed by my GP, but there hasn't been a great deal of improvement and I am wondering whether this is lichen planus too.  I know that eyelids can be affected.  Has anyone else had an eye problem with lichen planus?  Would love to know more before I go back to my GP.

1 like, 4 replies

4 Replies

  • Posted

    Hello. I have erosive oral lichen planus. Through a blood test from the regular doctor I also found out that I have Sjögren's syndrome  which is another autoimmune disorder which cause dry eyes and mouth. You might asked your doctor to test you for that if you haven't already. 

    • Posted

      Thank you Angie.  Sorry to hear that you have Sjogren's syndrome.  Although my eyes are so dry, my mouth is fine, so I don't think I have that.  However, I will mention it to my GP.

  • Posted

    Hi Cheetah,

    I also have Sjogrens and OLP plus vulva Lichen  sclerousus.   They all seem to be interconnected. I tested positive for Sjogrens before I developed OLP. 

    You might ask your doctor if your a candidate for Restasis, it is prescription eye drop and works great on dry eyes.

    Good luck and hoping your health improves soon. This can be a terrible disease, but we get by with a little help from our friends! Oh gosh! Isn't that a song???? smile

    Good luck.

    • Posted

      Thank you so much, Linda.  I hadn't made any sort of connection with Sjorgen's Syndrome, but your post, and Angie's, have made me look into it more.  I was very surprised to see the other symptoms associated with Sjorgen's, particularly joint pain, IBS and fatigue, all of which I have, and also that you can have Sjorgen's with just dry eyes.  I'll be seeing my GP next week, so will definitely ask about any connection and, hopefully, be referred to an ophthalmologist.  That's the plan, anyway!  Thanks again, and keep singing!

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