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A Randomized Placebo-Controlled Trial of Mebendazole for Halitosis
Bahri Ermis, MD;
Turan Aslan, MD;
Levent Beder, MD;
Murat Unalacak, MD
Arch Pediatr Adolesc Med. 2002;156:995-998.
Objective To test whether mebendazole, an antiparasitic drug, would affect recovery
from halitosis.
Design We conducted a randomized, double-blind, placebo-controlled trial between
April 1999 and September 2001.
Setting A referral medical center.
Patients One hundred sixty-two children aged 5 to 16 years whose parents complained
about their chronic bad breath.
Interventions Children were randomly assigned to receive mebendazole (n = 82) or placebo
(n = 80).
Main Outcome Measure Parents whose children had halitosis were evaluated for halitosis at
2 months of treatment by questionnaire. The microbiologist investigated the
stool samples of children for parasitosis at the beginning of the trial and
also at the end of the trial in children who were treated with mebendazole.
Results Among those children who had evidence of parasites in stool samples
at the beginning of the trial, 18 of 28 who were treated with mebendazole
recovered from halitosis, compared with 2 of 24 who received placebo (relative
risk [RR] for recovery, 7.7; 95% confidence interval [CI], 2.0-29.9). Among
those who did not have stool parasites, 14 of 52 improved with mebendazole,
compared with 10 of 48 taking placebo (RR, 1.3; 95% CI, 0.6-2.6). Mebendazole
intake made a significant difference whether or not the children had parasites
(P = .002).
Conclusions Parasitosis should be considered as a possible cause of halitosis in
the pediatric patient population. Mebendazole therapy seems to offer benefit
to those children with parasites as a potential cause of their halitosis.
From the Departments of Pediatrics (Dr Ermis), Infectious Diseases
(Dr Aslan), Otorhinolaryngology (Dr Beder), and Family Medicine (Dr Unalacak),
School of Medicine, Karaelmas University, Zonguldak, Turkey.
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