Treatment of lichen planus with acitretin. A double-blind, placebo-controlled study in 65 patients.

Sixty-five patients with lichen planus were included in a multicenter trial of acitretin. At the end of an 8-week placebo-controlled, double-blind phase, a significantly higher number of patients treated with 30 mg/day acitretin (64%) showed remission or marked improvement compared with placebo (13%). Furthermore, during the subsequent 8-week open phase, 83% of previously placebo-treated patients responded favorably to acitretin therapy. Typical retinoid adverse reactions were present in all patients on active drug. Laboratory studies did not show any clinically significant changes. This study shows that acitretin is an effective and acceptable therapy for severe cases of lichen planus.