BURNING MOUTH SYNDROME: TOPICAL APPLICATION OF 0.002% CAPSAICIN (Capsicum frutescens L) SÍNDROME DA ARDÊNCIA BUCAL: APLICAÇÃO TÓPICA DE 0,002% CAPSAICINA (Capsicum frutescens L)

To evaluate the effectiveness of topical application of capsaicin (Capsicum frutescens L) at a concentration of 0.002% for the Burning Mouth Syndrome (BMS) treatment. Study design: Forty patients diagnosed with BMS were evaluated at the Center for Diagnosis of Diseases of the Mouth, School of Dentistry, Federal University of Pelotas (Brazil). Clinical characteristics such as type of BMS, time to express the BMS symptoms and most affected site were evaluated. Patients were oriented to mouth rinse for 1 minute, 20 drops of diluted substance in 50 ml of water, 3 times a day, during 7 days. All the data obtained were transferred to a data bank and analyzed statistically using SPSS 14.0.1. The chi-square test, t-test were used for mono factor analysis. A probability of P ? 0.05 was accepted as significant. Results: The BMS type II was the most prevalent and the most affected site was the tongue. Twenty-two patients obtained partial reduction of symptoms (up to) 50% of remission) and 9 (22,5%) individuals showed complete reduction of symptoms. Conclusion: Topical application of capsaicin as mouthwash proved itself as an alternative for the treatment of symptoms in patients with BMS. It is necessary to conduct new studies to identify the causes of BMS and, mainly, to identify an effective and cheap treatment for patients, helping the approach to this pathology.