A controlled trial of a dissolving oral patch concerning glycyrrhiza (licorice) herbal extract for the treatment of aphthous ulcers

Abstract

Recurrent aphthous ulcers (RAU) are a common and painful condition. This article describes a randomized, double-blind clinical trial of an over-the-counter medicated intraoral adhesive patch for treatment of RAU. Subjects were randomly assigned to either an active drug (patch with extract of glycyrrhiza root) or placebo patch treatment group (both n=23) at onset of a lesion. Lesion size and pain report (unstimulated and stimulated) were assessed at intervals. A no-treatment group (n=23) also was recruited and assessed similarly. By the eighth day, the ulcer size for the active treatment group was significantly lower (p < 0.05), while the By the fourth day, the active treatment group lesions in the no-treatment group increased 13% from baseline.reported significantly less pre-stimulus pain (p < 0.01); at this point, 81% of this group reported no pre-stimulus pain, comp ared with 63% of the placebo patch group and 40% of the no-treatment group