Evaluation of the efficacy of alum suspension in treatment of recurrent ulcerative ulceration

Abstract EN

Background : recurrent aphthous ulceration or recurrent aphthous stomatitis is the most common oral mucosal disease known to human beings.

Despite much clinical and research attention, the causes remain poorly understood, the ulcers are not preventable, and treatment is symptomatic.

The most common presentation is minor recurrent aphthous stomatitis : recurrent, round, clearly defined, small, painful ulcers that heal in 10 to 14 days without scarring.

Major recurrent aphthous ulcerative lesions are larger (greater than 5 mm), can last for 6 weeks or longer and frequently scar.

The third variety of recurrent aphthous stomatitis is herpetiform ulcers, which present as multiple small clusters of pinpoint lesions that can coalesce to form large irregular ulcers and last 7 to 10 days.

Diagnosis of all varieties is usually made after clinical examination.

Alum Potassium aluminum sulfate, or ammonium aluminum sulfate, used especially as an emetic, an astringent, and a styptic.

Patients and Method : A sample of fifty two patients were included in this study.

28 female, 24 male, ages range 20-40 years.

They all participated in a randomized double-blind placebo controlled study.

Patients with RAU were separated in to 5 groups, and these were treated with 1, 3, 5, 7 % of alum suspension, and placebo, applied topically four times daily, for five days treatment.

Patients response to treatment was determined by ; clinical evaluation of subjective treatment response, duration of lesion healing.

Results : statistical analysis of the effect on healing time of the three concentrations of the drug (3, 5, 7) had a significant reduction in the time required for complete healing of the ulcer compared with placebo group.

Conclusions : alum shortened the duration of healing on RAU with lack of any side effects.