Lugol's iodine and methylene blue as an adjunctive tool for early diagnosis of premalignant oral lesions.

Abstract

Objective: To compare Lugol’s Iodine and Methylene blue as an adjunctive tool for early diagnosis of premalignant oral lesions by taking histopathology as the gold standard. Study Design: Cross-sectional descriptive. Setting: Outpatient Department of Isra Dental College Hospital, Isra University Hyderabad. Period: January 2021 to July 2021. Material & Methods: All patients with oral premalignant lesions were selected. Methylene blue and iodine staining were used in the lesion area. The dye was applied directly with a cotton bud for 10–20 seconds, and the mouth was resigned with tap water. The dye retention pattern was evaluated by the stain retention intensity on the lesion. Incisional biopsy was performed simultaneously at that site as a gold standard. Results: Out of 60 cases, males were 49 (81.6%) and females were 11(18.3%). The mean age of males and females was 41.910.7 years and 39.87.74 years, respectively. Out of all patients, 65.0% had more than one addictive habit of mainpuri, gutka, or supari. The commonest region of oral lesions was the buccal mucosa among 61.6% of patients, followed by the alveolus in 16.6%, lips 8.3%, tongue 6.6%, and retro molar area 3.33%, while the palate and floor of the mouth were involved in 1.66% of patients. According to the diagnostic accuracy of methylene blue, the sensitivity was 89.4% and the specificity was 66.6%. According to the Lugol’s, iodine sensitivity was 83.3% and specificity was 50%. Conclusion: It has been determined that methylene blue and lugols iodine staining are the best, easy, and noninvasive screening tools to detect the early diagnosis of malignancy.