Evaluation of serum zinc levels in patients with recurrent aphthous stomatitis (RAS)

BACKGROUND: Recurrent aphthous stomatitis (RAS) is an ulcerative disease of the oral mucosa without a clearly defined etiology. The aim of the study was to evaluate the serum zinc levels in patients with RAS in comparison to healthy controls and to validate the association between zinc levels and the course of RAS. METHODS: Seventy-five patients with RAS and 72 controls underwent full dental examination. Serum zinc levels were determined by flame atomic absorption spectroscopy (F AAS). The results were statistically analyzed with Kruskal-Wallis, Mann-Whitney, chi-square tests and the test of difference between the two rates of structure with p < 0.05 as a significance level (Statistica 10, StatSoft®). RESULTS: No statistically significant differences were detected in serum zinc levels between RAS patients and healthy controls. The mean serum zinc concentration was found to be 84.2 μg/dL in RAS group and 83.9 μd/dL in controls, within the accepted norms. Zinc deficiency was observed in 10.7% patients from the RAS group and in 6.9% controls. No significant differences in serum zinc levels were found between patients when the course of the disease was considered. CONCLUSIONS: Serum zinc concentrations did not differ significantly in RAS patients and in healthy controls and it did not influence the course of the disease. Therefore, zinc does not appear to be an important modifying factor in the development of RAS.