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Photobiomodulation preconditioning for oral mucositis prevention and quality of life improvement in chemotherapy patients: a randomized clinical trial

M. Khalil, Omar Hamadah, M. Saifo

BMC Oral Health, 2025

45 participants · 17 citations

Abstract

Given the suffering experienced by cancer patients, effective solutions must be found to prevent painful and debilitating side effects of anti-cancer treatment. This trial aims to study the effect of preconditioning with photobiomodulation in preventing oral mucositis and xerostomia in cancer patients undergoing chemotherapy alone for the first time, and to examine its role in improving patients’ quality of life. This is a prospective, randomized, double-blind clinical trial including 45 patients divided into three age- and sex-matched groups. Group 1 received basic oral care instructions before undergoing chemotherapy. Group 2 received basic oral care instructions plus photobiomodulation using an intraoral 650 nm diode laser. Group 3 received basic oral care instructions plus photobiomodulation using a 650 nm diode laser intraorally and a 980 nm diode laser extraorally. After one week of follow-up, 73.3% of patients in Group 2 and 80% in Group 3 did not develop oral mucositis. The remaining patients in both groups experienced only mild erythema. In contrast, all patients in Group 1 developed oral mucositis, ranging from mild erythema to ulceration greater than 3 cm². After two weeks of follow-up, 80% of patients in Group 2 and 86.7% in Group 3 remained free of oral mucositis. The remaining patients in both groups experienced only mild erythema. In contrast, 93.3% of patients in Group 1 developed oral mucositis, with cases ranging from mild erythema to ulcers larger than 3…

How strong is the evidence?

Evidence Hub reads this as a randomized trial, done in people. Its evidence level is 2 of 5 (High · randomized trial). Randomized trials of a reasonable size are the strongest single-study design. Reported size: 45 participants or records.

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