Jameskep,

Thank you for that great report! IMO, it is noteworthy because it compares the results of many treatments.

"SAN DIEGO, CA -- October 9, 2007 -- In a comparison study of various agents used commonly for treatment of candidiasis of the mouth in patients with HIV,

!!gentian violet led the pack as the most potent of the inexpensive alternatives!!

Previously, studies comparing the inexpensive alternatives against the pricier fluconazole and nystatin for treatment of oral thrush in HIV populations have been lacking, but researchers have now conducted research on the use of gentian violet to treat candidiasis of the mouth.

!!The researchers compared various agents -- gentian violet, melaleuca, chlorhexidine, and povidone Iodine -- against fluconazole!!

Lead author Rana Traboulsi, MD, Researcher, Center for Medical Mycology, Case Western Reserve University, and Oral HIV/AIDS Research Alliance, Cleveland, Ohio, who wrote the protocol, presented the study findings in a poster on October 5 here at the Infectious Diseases Society of America (IDSA) 45th Annual Meeting.

The head-to-head study was an in vitro comparison of the antifungal activity of gentian violet, melaleuca, povidone iodine, and chlorhexidine against Candida isolates swabbed from the oral cavity of AIDS patients, providing rationale for selecting the most potent compound that will next be evaluated in a clinical trial.

!!Gentian violet, which has a long history of safe use, was shown to exhibit the most potent activity against all Candida isolates tested; !!

but unlike the other contenders, it had fungicidal activity and was effective against even the fluconazole-resistant strains.

"We did a review of the literature and didn't see anything being used in Africa except on a random basis," said Dr. Traboulsi, who added that she was in the process of submitting her group's findings to a peer-reviewed infectious disease journal.

A summary of the study's findings on gentian violet includes:

· Gentian violet is the most potent inexpensive topical alternative agent tested.

· It proved efficacious as a fungicidal against all C. albicans species tested, including the fluconazole-resistant Candida isolates.

· In vitro combination testing of GV and FLC showed no antagonistic interaction between the compounds.

· Gentian violet may have utility as an adjunct therapy for the treatment and prophylaxis of oropharyngeal candidiasis, a complication that develops in virtually every patient with AIDS.

Oral thrush can cause significant discomfort, pain, and even morbidity among HIV patients in resource-constrained communities; however, fluconazole and oral nystatin are both relatively expensive.

Dr. Traboulsi said that her research group is putting together the protocol for a clinical trial of gentian violet. "This is an inexpensive agent that can be used extensively in Africa, where they cannot afford typical antifungal drugs."

[Presentation Title: "Gentian Violet Is Fungicidal Against Candida Strains Isolated From the Oral Cavity of HIV Infected Patients. Poster 553]
http://www.docguide.com/fungicidal-gentian-violet-most-potent-and-least-expen...

More on gentian-violet
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* Wicki Report
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Crystal_violet
* 39 customer reviews
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Worst: It stains

I'm adding this message thread to our Candida References, many thanks to jameskep37
http://tinyurl.com/Iodine-Candida

Grizz

Here is an old article that claims Gentian Violet is superior to nystatin:

NOTE: Nystatin can only treat the lumen of the intestine and won't treat the intestinal wall.

Nystatin (Mycostatin) treatment resulted in
dramatic reduction or disappearance of C. albi- cans from stools on culture, generally accom- panied by clinical improvement. However, as soon as the Mycostatin treatment was discontinued there was either a much increased growth or a reappearance of C. albicans in the stool cultures together with the return of the clinical signs and symptoms. One explanation of this phenomenon may be the fact that C. albicans can invade and parasitize the intestinal wall, as shown by Beemer, Pryce and Riddell.5 Myco- statin, because of its physico-chemical proper- ties,1would be unable to get into close contact with the fungus there and thus completely eradicate the causative organism in the gut.
Administration of Mycostatin, however, proved to be the most valuable procedure in corroborating the diagnosis and establishing the symptomatology of intestinal moniliasis.
So far, gentian violet seems to be the most useful therapeutic agent although clinical cure was secured in only a few cases. Cases of short duration seem to be more amenable to treat- ment than those of long standing.

http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC1824501/pdf/canmedaj00764-0114.pdf