Abstract

Introduction: Diabetes mellitus is defined by the hyperglycemia and can be worsen by the different pathological changes including impaired wound healing. Defect in the wound healing causes delay in repairmen of it and development of chronic ulcers. Zinc deficiency related to the delay of wound healing. Reduction of antioxidants such as vitamin E associated with increased blood glucose which is a risk factor of increasing complications of diabetes. The purpose of this study was to evaluate the effect of zinc and vitamin E supplementation on the process of wound healing in diabetic rats in the Pasteur Institute of Tehran. Material and method: 42 male Wistar rats were randomly divided into three groups of controls, diabetic and diabetic with Zinc and vitamin E supplementation. Rats became diabetic by intraperitoneal injection of streptozotocin. In each groups, an 8 mm wound was created in buccal mucosa. Then, seven rats were randomly selected in each third and seventh day, to assess the wound diameter after anesthesia. Results: In the follow-up of third day, the highest diameter was in the diabetic group and the lowest was in the diabetic group who received supplements. In the follow-up of seventh day, the largest diameters were for the diabetic and the lowest were for the healthy group. In the healthy and diabetic groups, the reduction in wound diameter was significant from day three to seventh. Conclusion: The results of this study showed that zinc and vitamin E supplementation is effective in improving the process of oral mucosal ulcer in diabetic rats.