High prevalence of thyroid disease in patients with lichen sclerosus

OBJECTIVE: To investigate the association between lichen sclerosus and thyroid disease in our patient population. STUDY DESIGN: This was a retrospective chart review of patients seen between January 1995 and September 2005 with biopsy-proven lichen sclerosus. Charts were reviewed to assess the patients' history of thyroid discease. RESULTS: We identified 211 patients with biopsy-proven lichen sclerosus, 63 (29.9%) of whom had thyroid disease. In women < 55 years old, 25 of 74 (33.8%) had thyroid disease; in women >= 55 years old, 38 of 137 (27.7%) had thyroid disease. CONCLUSION: The prevalence of thyroid disease in our patients with biopsy-proven lichen sclerosus is almost 30% and is not dependent upon age. This prevalence is 5- to 30-fold greater than in the general population.