Recurrent Aphthous Stomatitis: Do We Know What Patients Are Using to Treat the Ulcers?

Objectives: The objectives of this study were to determine prevalence and types of treatments used by patients with recurrent aphthous stomatitis (RAS), and to study the sources of information about treatments used. Methods: The study was a cross-sectional survey. The participants were 530 students who had a history of RAS and were studying at the University of Jordan, Amman. Results: Of the 530 patients, 267 (50.4%) have attempted treatment of RAS. Of those who treated RAS, 86 (32.2%) have used alternative treatments (ATs). Topical anaesthetics/analgesics, antiseptic mouthwashes, and topical steroids represented 84.5% of the conventional medicines used. Of those who used ATs, 34 (39.5%) used tahini, 21 (24.4%) used salt/salt and warm water mouthrinse, and 7 (8.1%) used lemon/lemon salt. The tendency to treat RAS or not was not significantly affected by sociodemographic variables, but ATs were more significantly used by students living in rural areas. Relatives were the most frequently cited source of information about treatment (44.6%), followed by medical practitioners (22.9%), and only 9.4% sought treatment advice from dentists. Interestingly, 7% of the ATs were recommended by health care providers and 38.7% of the conventional treatments were recommended by non-health-care providers including 15 cases of topical steroids. Conclusions: This survey revealed a high prevalence of ATs use among Jordanian patients with RAS. There is a need to educate patients with RAS on the treatment options available to reduce their distress and to improve their quality of life. Health care providers such as medical practitioners and pharmacists are frequently consulted by patients with oral lesions, so they should provide patients with better education in the diagnosis and treatment of oral diseases. Randomized clinical trials are needed to examine the potential usefulness of the commonly used ATs in this study such as tahini/sesame oil in the treatment of RAS.