comparison of antifungal efficacy of zataria multiflora and nystatin for treatment of denture stomatitis: a randomized clinical trial

Statement of the problem: zataria multiflora (zm) is a thyme-like plant that belongs to the lamiaceae family. it is native to the center and south of iran, pakistan, and afghanistan. evi-dence shows that zm contains thymol and carvacrol and is therefore, effective for the treatment of many conditions especially fungal infections. oral candidiasis is the most common opportun-istic infection of the oral mucosa that plays a role in the development of denture stomatitis. purpose: this study aimed to compare the antifungal efficacy of zm and nystatin suspension for the treatment of denture stomatitis. materials and method: this single-blind clinical trial evaluated 28 patients (> 18 years old) suffering from type ii or iii denture stomatitis. patients were divided into two groups. the con-trol group used nystatin suspension while the case group used zm drop. the number of can-dida albicans (c. albicans) colony-forming units (cfus) and erythema of the palate were eval-uated at baseline and at 14 days after treatment. data were analyzed using spss version 11 via student’s t test and repeated measure anova. results: the results showed similar efficacy of nystatin and zm in the reduction of c.albicans cfus compared to the baseline value (p= 0.593). both medications significantly decreased the colony count (p< 0.001). nystatin and zm had similar efficacy for the reduction of erythema as well (p= 0.256) and both caused a significant reduction in erythema of the palate (p<0.001). conclusion: zm drop was as effective as the nystatin drop in the resolution of erythema of the palate and reduction of c. albicans colony count.