α-Lipoic acid treatment of 31 patients with sore, burning mouth

• Published in: Oral diseases Vol. 14; no. 6; pp. 529 - 532
• Main Authors: Steele, JC, Bruce, AJ, Drage, LA, Rogers III, RS
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: Oxford, UK Blackwell Publishing Ltd 01.09.2008
• Subjects: Adult; Aged; Aged, 80 and over; Antioxidants - administration & dosage; Antioxidants - therapeutic use; Attitude to Health; burning mouth; Burning Mouth Syndrome - drug therapy; Cohort Studies; Dentistry; Female; Follow-Up Studies; Humans; Lip Diseases - drug therapy; Male; Middle Aged; Palate - drug effects; Patient Satisfaction; Retrospective Studies; retrospective study; Taste Disorders - drug therapy; Thioctic Acid - administration & dosage; Thioctic Acid - therapeutic use; Tongue Diseases - drug therapy; Treatment Outcome; Vitamin B Complex - administration & dosage; Vitamin B Complex - therapeutic use; Xerostomia - drug therapy; α-lipoic acid
• ISSN: 1354-523X; 1601-0825
• DOI: 10.1111/j.1601-0825.2007.01414.x

Objective:  To review a series of patients with sore, burning mouth treated with α‐lipoic acid between 2000 and May 2006 and subjectively evaluate improvement in symptoms. Design:  Retrospective review of medical records of 195 consecutive patients who sought treatment for sore, burning mouth. Treatment of 47 patients was a prescription/recommendation for α‐lipoic acid. Of these patients, 35 were available for follow‐up. Setting:  Tertiary care academic medical center. Subjects:  Ambulatory patients given prescription /recommendation for α‐lipoic acid 600 mg per day, in divided doses. Main Outcome Measure:  Reported improvement in symptoms documented in medical records and at follow‐up (visits or telephone interviews). Results:  Thirty‐one of the 35 patients (66% of all 47) actually took α‐lipoic acid as recommended. No patient reported a complete alleviation of symptoms. Six (19%) of these 31 patients felt mostly better, five (16%) felt somewhat better, and 14 (45%) reported no difference. Two patients (7%) reported a worsening of symptoms and four (13%) did not know whether there had been improvement. Conclusion:  Eleven of 31 patients (35%) reported benefit from taking α‐lipoic acid. Because we examined only a small number of patients and relied on a subjective outcome assessment, further larger studies using a prospective, randomized, controlled, and double‐blind structure are warranted.