ClinicalTrials.gg
CompletedNCT04383236RASUpdated May 12, 2020

Probiotic Lozenges for Treatment of Recurrent Aphthous Stomatitis

An interventional study of Probiotics and Oracure oral gel in Oral Ulcer, sponsored by Reham Lotfy Aggour. Completed. Open to participants aged 3 Years to 45 Years. Per ClinicalTrials.gov, last updated 2020-05-12.

Sponsored by Reham Lotfy Aggour · Not applicable, Interventional, and Treatment

From the registry’s dates

  • Registered 3 years 5 months after the study started (first participant enrolled Dec 2016, registered May 2020).
Phase
Not applicable
Study type
Interventional
Enrollment
120
Allocation
Randomized
Ages
3 Years to 45 Years
Sex
All
01

Study summary

The application of host-modulating bacteria for therapeutic purposes is one of the strongest emerging fields. Probiotics are live microorganisms, which, when administered in an adequate amount, confer a health benefit on the host The study aimed to explore the effectiveness of probiotics in the treatment of the common ulcerative condition; minor recurrent aphthous stomatitis (RAS). We included sixty adult (group A) and 60 children patients (group B) with diagnosis of minor RAS . Both groups were divided into two subgroups, AI and BI (test subgroups ) and AII and BII (control subgroups). For test subgroups, probiotic lozenges were consecutively administered twice daily, for five days. The size and pain level of ulcers were recorded on treatment days 0, 3 and 5. The outbreak frequency of RAS within 6 months was investigated for all subgroups.

Read the detailed description

The study aimed to explore the effectiveness of probiotics in the treatment of minor recurrent aphthous stomatitis (RAS). We performed a randomized, controlled clinical study. Sixty adult (group A) and 60 children patients (group B) with diagnosis of minor RAS were included. Both groups were divided into two subgroups, AI and BI (test subgroups) and AII and BII (control subgroups). For test subgroups, probiotic lozenges were consecutively administered twice daily, for five days. The size and pain level of ulcers were recorded on treatment days 0, 3 and 5. The outbreak frequency of RAS within 6 months was investigated for all subgroups. Compared to baseline, an improvement was evident for all subgroups. However, for effectiveness in pain reduction, a statistically significant difference in favor of AI was observed for all evaluation periods when compared to control subgroup. Regarding effectiveness in ulcer size reduction, a statistically significant difference in favor of BI was observed at day 5 when compared to control subgroup. No significant difference was observed in the effectiveness index between subgroups AI and BI (test subgroups) except in effectiveness in pain reduction at day 3. The outbreak frequency decreased significantly in subgroup BI. We concluded that topical application of probiotics decreased pain intensity and accelerate RAS healing. The effectiveness in pain reduction is more evident in adult patients while acceleration of healing is more evident in children. Probiotics could be a well-tolerated, topical therapeutic agent in the treatment of minor RAS

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Conditions studied

  • Oral Ulcer

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Keywords

  • Aphthous, lactobacillus, probiotics
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In context

Oral Ulcer

54 studies on the registry are indexed under Oral Ulcer; 11 are open to participants now.

This study's enrollment of 120 is above the median of 60 across 47 interventional studies indexed under Oral Ulcer.

Browse Oral Ulcer studies →

Lead sponsor

Reham Lotfy Aggour is the lead sponsor of 2 studies on the registry; none are open to participants now.

Counted across the registry records on this site, refreshed daily.

04

Who can participate

Ages eligible
3 Years to 45 Years
Sexes eligible
All
Accepts healthy volunteers
No

Go through the criteria one by one — yes, no or not sure — and take the list to your doctor or the study team. Kept in this browser only.

Inclusion criteria

  • Males and females aged 18-45 years old, 2. Patients presenting with RAS with the following characteristics: a. Minor aphthous ulcers less than 48 hours' duration prior to enrolment, b. Size no greater than 10 mm in diameter, c. A history that ulcers normally more than 5 days to resolve without treatment. The inclusion criteria for group B is the same except age, children with RAS aged between 3 and 12 years were recruited for the study.

Exclusion criteria

Exclusion Criteria:

  • A known history of , immunologic or systemic diseases, pregnancy, smoking,
  • treatment with systemic or other immunomodulatory agents within 1 month before the study
  • use of nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory drugs or oral antihistamines within 1 month prior to the study
  • treatment of the ulcer with any preparation or medication within 72 hours prior to the study
  • treatment with systemic antibiotics within 2 weeks prior to the study and a history of adverse reactions to lactose or fermented milk products.
  • Children with a positive family history of RAS were excluded.
Terms in these criteria, in plain language(2)

Underlined terms in the criteria open these too. Explained by clinicaltrials.gg, not part of the registry record. The study team decides who can take part.

Hypersensitivity

An allergy, or another reaction of the immune system, to a substance. “Hypersensitivity to the study drug” means a known allergic reaction to it — not every side effect a medicine can have.

Corticosteroids (steroids)

Anti-inflammatory medicines such as prednisone, prednisolone and dexamethasone — not the anabolic steroids used for muscle.

Studies differ in what they allow: check which steroid medicines, routes (tablets, injections, creams, inhalers, eye drops) and doses this study accepts.

05

Study design

Phase
Not applicable
Primary purpose
Treatment
Allocation
Randomized
Intervention model
Parallel assignment
Masking
Single (Outcomes assessor)
Enrollment
120 participants (actual)

Study arms

  • Experimental
    ChocBalls

    (L. acidophilus containing lozenges, PharmaCare Europe Ltd; West Sussex, RH10 9NQ, UK)

    Other: Probiotics

  • Active comparator
    Oracure oral gel (15 gm, Amun pharmaceutical company, Egypt)

    Each 100 g contains: Lidocaine HCI 2.0g. Cetylpyridinium chloride 0.1 g.

    Drug: Oracure oral gel

Interventions

  • OtherProbiotics

    Sixty adult (group A) and 60 children patients (group B) with diagnosis of minor RAS were included. Both groups were divided into two subgroups, AI and BI (test subgroups) and AII and BII (control subgroups). For test subgroups, probiotic lozenges were consecutively administered twice daily, for five days. The size and pain level of ulcers were recorded on treatment days 0, 3 and 5. The outbreak frequency of RAS within 6 months was investigated for all subgroups.

  • DrugOracure oral gel

    Sixty adult (group A) and 60 children patients (group B) with diagnosis of minor RAS were included. Both groups were divided into two subgroups, AI and BI (test subgroups) and AII and BII (control subgroups). For control subgroups, oracure gel were consecutively applied twice daily, for five days. The size and pain level of ulcers were recorded on treatment days 0, 3 and 5. The outbreak frequency of RAS within 6 months was investigated for all subgroups.

06

What researchers measure

Primary outcomes

  1. Ulcer size reduction

    The index ulcer's size was measured on treatment days 0, 3 and 5. The investigators measured the maximum and minimum diameters when the ulcer has an oval shape, using a calibrated dental probe with millimeter markings. The two measurements were then be multiplied to represent the cross-sectional areas of the ulcer.

    Time frame: 5 days

  2. Ulcer pain moderation

    a visual analog scale (VAS) consisting of a 10-cm horizontal line between poles connoting no pain (origin) to unbearable pain was used. Subjects was told to mark the line with a vertical line at the point that best represented the present pain level of the ulcer

    Time frame: 5 days

Secondary outcomes

  1. Outbreak frequency/ 6 months

    Participants were asked to estimate the average duration of episodes during the past 6 months and the potential to reduce the outbreak frequency of RAS within the next 6 months was investigated

    Time frame: 6 months

07

Study locations

No study locations are listed for this record.

08

References and documents

Publications

  • Aggour RL, Mahmoud SH, Abdelwhab A. Evaluation of the effect of probiotic lozenges in the treatment of recurrent aphthous stomatitis: a randomized, controlled clinical trial. Clin Oral Investig. 2021 Apr;25(4):2151-2158. doi: 10.1007/s00784-020-03527-7. Epub 2020 Aug 20. PubMed 32820431 ↗

Study documents

PDFs hosted by the registry, ClinicalTrials.gov.

Individual participant data

Plan to share: No

09

Timeline

Tracking since Sep 25, 2026
ElapsedEstimatedEstimated, not yet reachedSimilar studies: half by the dot; the band is the middle halfHalf of similar studies reached it by the dot; the band is the middle half, from a quarter to three quarters

Ran from Dec 2016 to primary completion in Oct 2018, 22 months.

Of 16 interventional studies with no phase under Oral Ulcer, half reached primary completion within 11 months of starting (the median), counting those still running; a quarter within 6 and three quarters within 29. This study's 22 months is above that.

How these figures are worked out, and which studies are left out of them.

Registered
May 7, 2020
First posted
May 12, 2020
StartActual
Dec 1, 2016
Primary completionActual
Oct 20, 2018
CompletionActual
Apr 21, 2019
Last update
May 12, 2020
What these dates mean
Start.
When the first participant enrolled; while estimated, when the study expects to open to recruitment.
Primary completion.
When the last participant was examined or treated to collect data for the study's main question, its primary outcome. A study that stopped early gives the date its data collection stopped.
Completion.
When the last participant's last visit took place, for every outcome, secondary ones and side effects included: the end of the study. Often later than primary completion, sometimes the same day.
Actual and Est.
Actual means the registry says the date has happened. Est. (estimated) is a date the sponsor plans or expects. It can still move, and the sponsor is expected to change it to actual once it has passed.
No changes since tracking began. The registry record was last updated on May 12, 2020, before this site started recording changes on Sep 25, 2026. Its history is on ClinicalTrials.gov ↗
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Registry details

Key details

Study ID
NCT04383236
Lead sponsor
Reham Lotfy Aggour
Responsible party
Reham Lotfy Aggour (Associate professor of Oral Medicine, diagnosis & Periodontology, October 6 University) — Sponsor-investigator
First posted
May 12, 2020
Start date
Dec 1, 2016
Primary completion
Oct 20, 2018
Completion
Apr 21, 2019
Last update
May 12, 2020

Study contacts

Reham Aggour, Dr
principal investigator · Oral Medicine & Periodontology department

Oversight

FDA-regulated drug
No
FDA-regulated device
No
View the source record on ClinicalTrials.gov ↗

Not currently enrolling

This study is completed, as verified in May 2020. You cannot join it, but the record below documents what was studied.

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