Comparing the Therapeutic Effects of Vaseline and Sterile Ophthalmic Vitamin A Ointment on Exfoliative Cheilitis Treatment

Exfoliative cheilitis is an inflammatory condition characterized by regular peeling of keratin superficial layer. The unpleasant appearance and dryness of lips in this condition could be mentioned as the cause of complaint and discontent in patients. Therefore, this study aimed to compare the therapeutic effects of Vaseline and sterile ophthalmic vitamin A ointment on treatment of Exfoliative cheilitis.

In this double-blind clinical trial, 30 patients with Exfoliative cheilitis were identified, who were randomly divided into two groups: Vitamin A and Vaseline. The patients recieved the drugs topically, 3 times per day for 1 week as directed. Improvement in both groups, including severity and size of lesions, were measured on 2nd, 4th and 7th days, and the study data were analyzed applying Mann-Whitney test at significance level of 0.05.

The mean and SDs of the lesions size did not reveal any statistically significant differences  before and after treatment (P-value >0.05). The mean and SDs of lesions severity were proved to be significant in each group after the treatment in comparison with before the treatment (P-value< 0.001), though no significant differences were reported comparing the two groups, except the 4th day, that vit A demonstrated more improvement compared to Vaseline.

The study findings revealed that both vit A oinment and Vaseline are both effective in improving lesion severity of Exfoliative cheilitis, although vit A oinment is more effective in improving its signs and symptoms.