Might low-level laser therapy interfere with the frequency of severe mucositis and oral candidiasis? A retrospective analysis in patients with head and neck carcinoma

Abstract Purpose Considering the tumor in the oral cavity or the oropharynx and nasopharynx region might be an aggravating factor for Oral Mucositis (OM) manifestation, the present study aimed to evaluate whether the location of the tumor and the use of Low-level laser therapy (LLLT) might affect the frequency of oral candidiasis during radiotherapy (RT) and/or chemotherapy (CT) treatments. Methods Seventy-four patients with head and neck cancer were evaluated from 2016 to 2019. All these patients were submitted to RT in an accumulated dose of 48 to 70 Gy of radiation. These patients were followed with OM and OC treatment and divided into two groups: No-LLLT (SHAM group) and LLLT (Laser group). The correlation between clinical characteristics such as age, tumor size (T), metastatic lymph node (N), number of RT and CT sessions, candidiasis, and OM were analyzed. Results Mucositis grades 1 and 2 were the most common among all patients, especially before the 12th radiotherapy session, regardless of the treatment with LLLT. Additionally, no difference in the grade of OM and OC was significantly observed when comparing the two laser therapy groups. OC was more frequent after the 12th radiotherapy session in all groups. Conclusion OM and OC was not changed by LLLT, although it helped to reduce the incidence of severe cases of OM. Patients with oral cavity tumor presented more OM, especially high grades, then patients with tumors in other regions of the head and neck, which seems to be related to the irradiation parameters of radiotherapy and/or with the limitation of conduction of LLLT in tumor areas.