A Preliminary Study Using High-Frequency Ultrasound to Evaluate Vulvar Skin With Lichenoid Vulvar Dermatoses.

Background: Lichenoid vulvar dermatoses (LVD) are inflammatory diseases primarily affecting the vulva and anus. This study aims to evaluate the skin changes in patients with LVD using high-frequency ultrasound.

Methods: Forty-five patients with LVD, who attended Henan Provincial People's Hospital from November 2021 to March 2024, were selected. According to the pathological conclusions, patients were divided into two groups: the vulvar lichen sclerosus (VLS) group (n = 24) and the vulvar lichen simplex chronicus (VLSC) group (n = 21). Thirty age- and BMI-matched healthy women were selected as the control group. We assessed the epidermal thickness, subepidermal low echogenic band (SLEB) thickness, dermal thickness, and vascular index (VI) among the three groups. Receiver operating characteristic curve (ROC) analysis was performed to determine the diagnostic efficacy of these ultrasound parameters for LVD. Binary logistic regression was used to investigate risk factors influencing LVD pathology in VLS patients.

Results: Epidermal thickness, SLEB thickness, dermal thickness, and VI were increased in the VLS and VLSC groups compared to the control group (p < 0.05). There were no statistically significant differences in ultrasound parameters between the VLS and VLSC groups (p > 0.05). The ROC curves showed that the area under the curve (AUC) value for the dermis (AUC = 0.882) was the largest for VLS, and VI (AUC = 0.917), it was the largest for VLSC. Binary logistic regression indicated that having an allergic disease was a risk factor for VLS between VLS and VLSC groups (OR = 6.797, p = 0.028).

Conclusion: High-frequency ultrasound can detect thickening of the skin and increasing VI in patients with LVD, which can be helpful in the evaluation and management of LVD.