Patients treated with Antimicrobial Photodynamic Therapy

Patients treated with Nystatin antifungal drug.

The efficacy of the treatments was verified microbiologically at the baseline (initial). For each patient, oral swabs were rubbed onto the palatal mucosa and on the tissue surface of the denture for 1 minute to recover the microorganisms. Each swab was placed into a Falcon tube (Corning, New York, USA) containing 5 mL of 0.9% sterile saline solution and vortexed for 1 minute to suspend the microorganisms from the swab. To evaluate Candida spp. survival and to presumptively identify Candida species by colony color, serial 10-fold dilutions from 100 to 103 were plated in duplicate on Chromagar Candida and incubated at 30 °C for 5 days. Additionally, to assess the total microbiota survival (fungal and bacteria), serial 10-fold dilutions from 102 to 104 were plated onto Blood agar.

The efficacy of the treatments was verified microbiologically immediately at the end of the treatments. For each patient, oral swabs were rubbed onto the palatal mucosa and on the tissue surface of the denture for 1 minute to recover the microorganisms. Each swab was placed into a Falcon tube (Corning, New York, USA) containing 5 mL of 0.9% sterile saline solution and vortexed for 1 minute to suspend the microorganisms from the swab. To evaluate Candida spp. survival and to presumptively identify Candida species by colony color, serial 10-fold dilutions from 100 to 103 were plated in duplicate on Chromagar Candida and incubated at 30 °C for 5 days. Additionally, to assess the total microbiota survival (fungal and bacteria), serial 10-fold dilutions from 102 to 104 were plated onto Blood agar.

The efficacy of the treatments was verified microbiologically on day 15 after the end of the treatments. For each patient, oral swabs were rubbed onto the palatal mucosa and on the tissue surface of the denture for 1 minute to recover the microorganisms. Each swab was placed into a Falcon tube (Corning, New York, USA) containing 5 mL of 0.9% sterile saline solution and vortexed for 1 minute to suspend the microorganisms from the swab. To evaluate Candida spp. survival and to presumptively identify Candida species by colony color, serial 10-fold dilutions from 100 to 103 were plated in duplicate on Chromagar Candida and incubated at 30 °C for 5 days. Additionally, to assess the total microbiota survival (fungal and bacteria), serial 10-fold dilutions from 102 to 104 were plated onto Blood agar.

To verify the clinical efficacy of the treatments, the oral lesions on the palatal mucosal were evaluated. For this, standardized photographs of the palates were taken prior to the beginning of the treatments (initial) and up to 45 days after the end of the treatments. All the photographs were taken with the same digital camera (NIKON D7000, Tokyo, Japan), by the same operator, under the same conditions (place, light, position). After that, all photographs were analyzed by two individuals blinded to the treatment performed, to classify the oral lesion in type I, II or III in all time intervals.