Lichen planus is associated with depression and anxiety: a cross-sectional study in the All of Us research program

Lichen planus (LP) can be accompanied by psychiatric comorbidities. Studies investigating the relationship between LP and clinically diagnosed anxiety and depression are limited. We aimed to determine the association of LP with anxiety and depression by conducting a cross-sectional population study of the All of Us research database, a National Institutes of Health cohort. Patients with LP were identified through electronic health record data using codes from the International Classification of Diseases and Systematized Nomenclature of Medicine. We used multivariable logistic regression to assess associations between LP and anxiety and depression before and after controlling for relevant covariates. Among 239,552 participants, 1083 individuals with LP were identified, with an average age of 67.20 years (standard deviation, 11.79) and a female predominance (74% female). The prevalence of depression and anxiety were higher among individuals with LP than in those without (41.6% vs 27.7%, p < 0.001; 43.5% vs 29.6%, p < 0.001). LP remained significantly associated with depression (OR, 1.36; 95% CI, 1.20–1.56, p < 0.001) and anxiety (OR, 1.48; 95% CI, 1.30–1.68, p < 0.001) after controlling for age, sex, hypothyroidism, autoimmune diseases, hypertension, type II diabetes mellitus, cardiovascular disease, and hepatitis C infection. In this cross-sectional study, LP was associated with an increase in odds of having depression and anxiety in multivariable analysis. Further study is needed to better understand the relationship between mental health outcomes and LP to address the needs of patients with LP more completely.