Objectives: Oral submucous fibrosis (OSMF) is a potentially malignant disorder predominantly seen in the Indian subcontinent due to areca nut, tobacco and their products. The aim of the present study was to compare the efficacy of oxitard and aloe vera in the management of OSMF. Material and Methods: 120 subjects with OSMF were included in the study. The patients were clinico-pathologically diagnosed and divided equally in 2 groups, Group A (oxitard group) and Group B (aloe vera group). Group A was administered 2 oxitard capsules twice daily and Group B was given 5 mg aloe vera gel to be applied topically thrice daily for 3 months. Different clinical parameters were evaluated at regular intervals. Data was analyzed using the Student’s paired t test and Chi-square test. P-value <0.001 was considered to be statistically significant. Results: Clinical improvements in mouth opening and tongue protrusion was significant in the oxitard group (p=0.0005). Subjective symptoms of pain associated with the lesion (p=0.0003), difficulty in swallowing (p=0.0000) and speech (p=0.0001) also significantly improved in the Group A. The improvement in burning sensation was not statistically significant between the 2 groups (p=0.002). There was a mild to moderate decrease in the size of the lesion. Conclusions: Though there is no definitive treatment for the condition however, overall assessment of symptoms like mouth opening, tongue protrusion, difficulty in swallowing and speech and pain associated with the lesion showed that oxitard capsules can bring about significant clinical improvements than aloe vera gel in the treatment of OSMF. Key words:Oral submucous fibrosis, oxitard capsules, aloe vera, burning sensation, mouth opening.

The results indicate that cysts and tumors do develop in a relatively small but still considerable minority of patients. The fact that a considerable number of patients had no signs or symptoms indicating pathology is certainly worth considering. Consultation should be sought from dental specialists if there are symptoms in the third molar region.

NTRODUCTION Mandibular third molar is most commonly impacted tooth. Surgical removal of mandibular third molars is one of the most frequently performed procedures in oral and maxillofacial surgery. The most frequent complication which follows the removal of impacted mandibular third molars is 'dry socket'. Some degree of swelling, trismus and pain, unless they are related to infection or excessive trauma, must be regarded as a normal response to surgery. 1 Risk factors for postoperative complications have been assessed and patient age as well as gender, oral contraceptives, smoking, oral hygiene, difficulty of surgery, tooth anatomy and position, therapeutic or prophylactic indication for extraction, wound I ABSTRACT: Background: Surgical removal of mandibular third molars is one of the most frequently performed procedures in oral and maxillofacial surgery. This study was done to evaluate the benefits of antibiotic therapy in reducing post-operative complications after removal of asymptomatic mandibular impacted third molar teeth. Methods: This clinical study was conducted at Oral and Maxillofacial Surgery Department From Jan 2014 to Dec. 2015. It involved 100 patients with impacted mandibular 3rd molars which were divided randomly in to two groups of 50 each. Group I was prescribed Cap Amoxycillin 500 mg thrice daily for 5 days and Tab Metronidazole 400 mg thrice daily for 5 days after the surgical removal of mandibular third molars.Group II was not prescribed any antibiotic postoperatively. Post-operative complications like Pain, swelling, mouth opening was evaluated in all patients on 1 st day, 3 rd day, 7 th day and 10 th day. Results: Post-operative complications in both groups did not show statistically significant difference. Conclusions: The study showed that antibiotic didn't have a significant role in reducing postoperative complications after removal of asymptomatic impacted 3rd molar.