Cheilitis antedating Crohn's disease: case report and literature update of oral lesions.

Oral lesions occur in an impressive number of patients with Crohn's disease. The lesions often precede the intestinal symptoms, and follow a variable course from asymptomatic to severe. They are important because of their association with Crohn's disease and the possibility that they could lead to an earlier diagnosis of Crohn's disease. We present a patient with cheilitis which preceded the recognition of colonic and perianal Crohn's disease by 7 years. The cheilitis responded to injection of steroids into the lips, but was unaffected by oral prednisone, sulfasalazine, azathioprine, and metronidazole.