The term oral potentially malignant disorders , proposed at the World Health Organization workshop in 2005, has now been renamed potentially premalignant oral epithelial lesions (PPOELs). It is important to differentiate among PPOELs, which is a broad term to define a wide variety of clinical lesions, and oral epithelial dysplasia , which should be reserved specifically for lesions with biopsy-proven foci of dysplasia . PPOELs encompass lesions that include leukoplakia , erythroplakia , erythroleukoplakia, lichen planus , and oral submucous fibrosis . The primary goal of management of dysplasia includes prevention, early detection, and treatment before malignant transformation . The aim of this article is to inform the clinician about management of PPOELs.