Evaluation of the therapeutic effects of pelargonium sidoides in the experimental oral mucosite model induced with 5-florouracil in rats

Objective: Oral mucositis (OM) is an inflammatory erosive disease of the mucosa that starts with atrophy and erythema and results in an ulcerative pseudomembrane in advanced stages of the disease. Here, we evaluated the prophylactic and wound healing effectivity of Pelargonium sidoides (PS), which has immunomodulatory, anti-inflammatory, and antioxidant effects, during OM treatment. Materials and Methods: A total of 24 Wistar Albino rats were used in the study. Subjects were divided into 4 main groups as one control, one sham, and two study groups. Preoperative, postoperative, and control groups were intraperitoneally (i.p.) administered 100 mg/kg of 5-FU on the 1st day and 65 mg/kg of 5-FU on the 3rd day. Then, on the 3rd and 5th days, a wound was created on the right cheek mucosa of the rats. No medication for prophylaxis or treatment was administered to the subjects in the control group. The rats in the preoperative group were administered PS once a day for the first five days, while the rats in the postoperative group were administered PS once a day for the last five days via gavage. Saline (i.p.) was applied to the rats in the sham group on the 1st and 3rd days, and a wound was created on the right cheek mucosa on the 3rd and 5th days. No other medication was applied to the rats in this group. All groups were sacrificed on the 10th day of the experiment. Tissues taken from the cheek mucosa of the rats were examined histopathologically. Results: When the oral mucositis findings of the preoperative and control groups were compared, the wound healing in the preoperative group was observed to be better than the control group (p<0.05). Comparison of the oral mucositis findings of the postoperative and control groups showed that the wound healing in the postoperative group was also better than the control group (p<0.05). Among all OM models, wound healing was the least effective in the control group. Conclusion: It was determined that PS has positive effects on wound healing in terms of prevention and treatment of OM lesions. Keywords: Oral, Mucositis, Pelargonium sidoides