ABSTRACT
OBJECTIVE: This pilot study aimed to investigate the preventive effect of sage tea-thyme-peppermint hydrosol oral rinse used in conjunction with basic oral care on chemotherapy-induced oral mucositis. DESIGN: An open-label randomized controlled study. SETTING: Two oncology hospitals in Ankara, Turkey. INTERVENTIONS: Patients receiving 5-fluorouracil-based chemotherapy regimens were divided into the intervention group (N=30) and control group (N=30). Basic oral care was prescribed to the control group, while the intervention group was prescribed sage tea-thyme-peppermint hydrosol in addition to basic oral care. All patients were called to assess their compliance with the study instructions on day 5 and 14. MAIN OUTCOME MEASURES: Oral mucositis was evaluated using an inspection method or by assessing oral cavity photos based on the World Health Organization oral toxicity scale on day 5 and 14. RESULTS: Most of the patients in the intervention group did not develop oral mucositis on day 5. In addition, the incidence of grade 1 oral mucositis was statistically lower in the intervention group (10%) than the control group (53.3%) on day 5. By day 14, the majority of patients in both the groups had grade 0 oral mucositis. CONCLUSIONS: Sage tea-thyme-peppermint hydrosol oral rinse has promising results in alleviating oral mucositis. This hydrosol can be recommended for clinical use as it is well tolerated and cost-effective. However, further randomized controlled trials are needed to support the study.
