Novel drug delivery approaches for the management of oral candidiasis

Candidiasis is a fungal infection due to any type of Candida. Infections of the mouth are most common among children, the elderly, and those with weak immune systems. On average around 30-50% of world’s population carries Candida albicans as a normal element of oral microflora. The spores of Candida are harmless but become invasive and virulent when there is a disturbance in normal flora and in debilitation of the host immune status which plays a major role in pathogenesis. There are approximately 200 species in genus Candida. The most contagious and virulent among these is Candida albicans, which is isolated most frequently and accounts for about 75% of Candida infection. The diagnosis is based upon clinical examination of signs and symptoms in conjunction with thorough medical history. Mild incidences of oral candidiasis respond to topical therapies, while if relapses occur more quickly, then oral systemic antifungal therapy is recommended. Novel drug delivery systems are designed to achieve continuous delivery of drugs in a predictable manner with reproducible kinetics over an extended period of time.