Treatment of recurrent aphthous stomatitis with pentoxifylline

Recurrent Aphthous Stomatitis

“…It has been of clinical benefit in the management of vasculitides (Ely, 1988) and Behcet's syndrome (Yasim et al, 1996). In limited open studies, pentoxifylline (400 mg three times daily) for one month caused a notable reduction in the number of RAS episodes for up to 9 months after therapy; no side-effects were reported (Pizarro et al, 1995(Pizarro et al, , 1996Wahba-Yahav, 1995a,b). This seems the most promising agent currently available.…”

A Randomized, Double-blind, Placebo-Controlled Trial of Pentoxifylline for the Treatment of Recurrent Aphthous Stomatitis

“…All previous studies [20][21][22][23][24][25] have shown a substantial improvement in RAS during treatment with pentoxifylline using a similar dosage regimen to that used in this study, and 1 study claimed long-term resolution of lesions even after treatment had been discontinued. 23,24 Our own study, although showing some benefit with pentoxifylline, did not demonstrate a similar level of benefit, and we found no evidence of long-term cure.…”

“…Indeed, in 1 case, it is clear that 5 of the 22 patients in the study had associated systemic diseases, including rheumatoid arthritis, lupus erythematosus, ulcer- ative colitis, anorexia nervosa, and Parkinson disease, and some were taking systemic drugs, including corticosteroids and mesalazine. 20 Furthermore, although patients were used as their own control, some studies [20][21][22]24 provided little or no baseline data on the pattern of ulceration to which the treatment phase was being compared. A further difficulty with most of the earlier studies is the crude or illdefined nature of the measures being used to assess any change in the pattern of ulceration.…”

“…This was an extension of a small open-label study of 6 patients treated with 400 mg of pentoxifylline 2 to 3 times daily by the same group in 1993, in which treatment suppressed the ulcers in 5 patients. 21,22 In 1995, a study by Wahba-Yahav, 23,24 of 6 patients treated with 400 mg of pentoxifylline 3 times daily for 3 months, reported complete or almost complete resolution of ulceration in all 6 patients. Three of these patients were followed up for 9 months, 14 months, and 2 years.…”

“…In 1995, a Spanish group reported a 50% cure rate and 27% marked improvement in the pattern of RAS in an open-label uncontrolled study 20 of 22 patients with RAS treated with 400 mg of pentoxifylline 3 times daily for 6 months. This was an extension of a small open-label study of 6 patients treated with 400 mg of pentoxifylline 2 to 3 times daily by the same group in 1993, in which treatment suppressed the ulcers in 5 patients.…”