Hayashi, H., Kobayashi, R., Suzuki, A., Ishihara, M., Nakamura, N., Kitagawa, J., . . . Itoh, Y. (2014). Polaprezinc prevents oral mucositis in patients treated with high-dose chemotherapy followed by hematopoietic stem cell transplantation. Anticancer Research, 34, 7271–7277.
To investigate whether polaprezinc is effective in preventing oral mucositis (OM) in patients receiving high-dose chemotherapy and radiation followed by hematopoietic stem cell transplantation (HSCT)
The treatment group received polaprezinc alginate (P-AG) solution rinses four times per day for one month after transplantation. The control group received an azulene oral rinse four times per day for one month after transplantation.
Retrospective study
P-AG decreased the incidence of grade 2 or greater OM. The average grade of OM was lower in the P-AG group. There was a decrease in the amount of moderate to severe pain.
P-AG might be effective in lowering the incidence and severity of OM in patients receiving high-dose chemotherapy and radiation followed by HSCT.
P-AG may help in the prevention of OM, but additional study is warranted before a practice change is recommended.