Treatment of angular cheilitis. The significance of microbial analysis, antimicrobial treatment, and interfering factors.

This prospective study evaluated the significance of microbial analysis and antimicrobial treatment for the cure of angular cheilitis. Furthermore, various etiologic factors were investigated for their relative effect on the healing process. The study included 1) an open trial with 50 patients infected by Candida albicans and/or Staphylococcus aureus, and 2) an intraindividual comparison of eight patients with bilateral lesions infected by Candida albicans as the only detected pathogen. After a base-line examination the patients received ointments containing nystatin and/or fusidic acid, on the basis of the outcome of an initial microbial analysis. The patients were evaluated clinically, photographed, and examined for microorganisms at different time intervals. Ninety-six per cent of the patients who participated in the open trial had no sign of infection after 42 days of treatment. Lesions in the double-blind study, treated with nystatin, were healed after 28 days, whereas lesions that received placebo persisted throughout the treatment period. Increasing age, dry skin, and extended skinfolds at the corner of the mouth were factors closely related to the length of the healing process.