Context: Oral Mucositis (OM) is a very painful inflammatory condition, complicating patient's life. Hence it was appealing to find natural remedies, dietary modifications or both to manage this condition successfully.
Aim: to evaluate the efficiency of Propolis (P) and / or Intermittent Fasting (IF) in ameliorating OM.
Materials & Methods: 40 male Albino rats weighing 200-250 grams, divided into: Negative Control Group (-ve control Gp): 8 rats kept healthy, Positive Control Group (+ve): 8 rats subjected to OM induction in their buccal mucosa, (P) Gp: 8 rats subjected to OM Induction, given Propolis orally, (IF) Gp: 8 rats subjected to OM induction & IF, (P&IF) Gp: 8 rats subjected to OM induction, maintained on both P &IF simultaneously. After three weeks, buccal mucosae were processed and stained by H&E, Masson's Trichrome, and Anti-PCNA, examined by light microscope.
Results: +ve control Gp showed significant increase in vacuolated epithelial cells, apparent decrease in immature collagen fibers in CT, and significant reduction in PCNA-positive cells. In the P, IF, and P&IF Gps, there were marked improvement in epithelium and CT. The (P&IF) Gp manifested maximum decrease in vacuolated epithelial cells, increase of immature collagen fibers, and maximum increase in PCNA positive cells.
Discussion & conclusion: OM caused tissue destruction, which was evident in the +ve control Gp. Propolis intake greatly improved the histological appearance (confirming anti-inflammatory role of Propolis) as well as IF (confirming immune-boosting action). However, using both P & IF resulted in maximum improvement due to combined actions of both.