Severe oral manifestations of chronic graft-vs.-host disease

Background. Graft-vs.-host-disease, or GVBD, is the main cause of morbidity in patients who have received bone marrow transplants. Chronic GVHD, or cG VHD, occurs 100 days or more after the transplant procedure and may take th e form of various oral manifestations. Case Description. A 23-year-old woman received an allogeneic bone marrow tr ansplant. Although prophylactic therapy was provided, the patient developed cGVHD. Appropriate therapy was initiated, and it received a good clinical response at all sites affected by cGVHD, except in the oral cavity. The pat ient received complete symptomatic relief through revised systemic therapy, improved oral hygiene, use of topical medications and a monitored diet. Clinical Implications. Effective intervention by dentists is an important p art of increasing treatment effectiveness and improving quality of life in patients who received bone marrow transplants.