Bone marrow transplantation: graft versus host disease and oral changes

purpose: this study aimed to evaluate the prevalence of oral changes and their association with graft versus host disease (gvhd) in patients undergoing bone marrow transplantation (bmt). methods: the sample consisted of 51 bmt patients. a questionnaire was used to collect data on age, gender, disease, type and time of transplant, cell origin, and gvhd occurrence. the extraoral and intraoral clinical examinations were performed by specialized professionals. results: systemic gvhd was observed in 32.5% of the allogeneic transplant patients, and all of the patients with gvhd had oral manifestations. there was a statistically significant association between systemic gvhd and oral manifestations (p<0.001). conclusion: given the relatively high prevalence of oral changes associated with gvhd in patients undergoing bmt, this study confirms the need to consider dental aspects in the examination, diagnosis, treatment and prognosis of possible complications after bmt.