Jorjani Biomedicine Journal

Background and objectives: Recurrent Aphthous Stomatitis (RAS) is a common disease of the nonkeratinized oral mucosa characterized by painful ulcerations and inflammation, causing difficulty in eating, swallowing, and speaking. Symptomatic treatment is considered for this disease due to the ambiguity of the exact etiology. The beneficial therapeutic effects of Persica and Propolis mouthwashes led us to the objective of studying therapeutic potentials of these herbal mouthwashes.
Material and Methods: The present double-blind clinical trial was conducted on 40 patients with minor aphthous ulcers and no systemic disease, who were divided into two groups of 20 via random allocation (systematic random sampling). Each group received 15 drops of propolis or persica mouthwashes three times a day for 10 days. Pain intensity was recorded by measuring the score of Visual Analogue Scale (VAS) and the diameter of minor aphthous lesions (in mm) at three periods of before treatment, and on the second and sixth days after treatment. Data were analyzed by Mann-Whitney test.
Results: There was no significant difference between pain intensity and ulcer size before treatment and on the second day of treatment. The pain intensity on day 6 was significantly lower in Persica group (P=0.045) but no difference was observed in the mean ulcer size on day 6 between the two groups (P=0.104). The rate of pain relief (P=0.031) and reduction of ulcer size (P=0.046) were significantly higher in Persica group.
Conclusion: Propolis and Persica mouthwashes both reduce pain intensity and ulcer size in minor aphthous ulcers, and Persica showed a stronger potential to achieve these goals compared to propolis.

Background and Objectives: Xerostomia has been defined as the dry mouth sensation due to hyposalivation or change in saliva composition. Many herbal medicines have been used as treatment options. Since the combination of aloe vera extract and honey, and Lemon is suggested as a potent oral moisturizer, limited studies have been done in this field. Therefore, we decided to compare the effects of these two moisturizers in cases of xerostomia.
Material and Methods: a combination of aloe vera extract and honey, lemon extract, and placebo mouthwashes were provided to 30 participants suffering from xerostomia. Each patient used three types of mouthwash in the following order: For the first mouthwash, the patients were asked to express their sensation of dry mouth using VAS on the first, third, and fifth days. This was followed by a one-week rest period in which patients did not use mouthwash. The same process was repeated to measure the second and third mouthwashes.
Results: Lemon and a combination of aloe vera extract and honey were both found to be significantly effective in reducing the dry mouth sensation. However, lemon was significantly more effective in this regard. Placebo was significantly less effective than both extracts and overall had no statistically significant impact on the dry mouth sensation (p<0.001)
Conclusion: Lemon mouthwash was significantly more effective than a combination of aloe vera and honey. Thus, it is recommended to improve dry mouth sensation.