Roanoke Times
Copyright (c) 1995, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: WEDNESDAY, June 16, 1993 TAG: 9306160221
SECTION: NATIONAL/INTERNATIONAL PAGE: A-1 EDITION: METRO
SOURCE: Cox News Service
DATELINE: BOCA RATON, FLA. LENGTH: Medium
And that's not all. The same treatment apparently also knocks out a host of other maladies including athlete's foot, ringworm and diaper rash and may even be useful as a paint additive.
The tin compound developed by chemist Charles Carraher, dean of the College of Science, and Cindy Butler, associate professor of medical technology, has been patented and is being tested by two large national consumer products companies.
Yeast infections are caused by a microorganism that thrives in warm moist parts of the body. Vaginal yeast infections affect from 10 percent to 17 percent of all women and the incidence for pregnant women is double that, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.
The infection also affects men, who act as carriers, causing irritation and rashes. In men, it often is called jock itch.
About half of all AIDS patients also have the disease.
Existing cures for yeast infections usually require several applications and take at least a week to 10 days to take effect, according to officials at the University of Miami Medical School. Carraher said his treatment kills the infection in a day.
"The beauty of it is that it's a one-shot treatment," he said.
Some strains of yeast infections are resistant to existing treatments, but Carraher said his treatment kills all strains. And he said in his own tests, it never failed.
"We tested our material against all of the things you can get by prescription and over the counter," he said. "We beat the heck out of them. We're much deadlier at much lower concentrations."
The new compound, which is based on the modification of polyvinyl alcohol, can be mixed as a dry powder or put in creams, lotions, ointments and coatings, according to Carraher. It also can be used as a solid.
In this form, Carraher said, thin strips could be woven into feminine health care products, such as sanitary napkins and douches, to prevent yeast infections and also could be woven into baby diapers to prevent diaper rash.
Carraher said he originally thought the substance would be used just for yeast infections, but that as companies started testing it, they began suggesting other uses for it. He said he knows of people who have used it on athlete's foot and have seen the infection quickly disappear.
Butler, who is director of FAU's laboratory science program, said she has seen it kill ringworm.
"I've seen it happen overnight," she said. "A carpenter friend of mine frequently gets ringworm. Just rub the compound in, and it's gone the next day."
It's safe to the skin, Carraher said, adding, "As far as I know, you can eat the thing."
Kimberly-Clark and Clorox are testing the substance but declined to talk about it, citing proprietary reasons. However, a Clorox spokesman acknowledged that his company was testing it for uses other than treating yeast infections.
Carraher said, "Their tests have been very successful. That's what they've been telling us."
The products are at least two or three years away from being put on the market, the Clorox spokesman said.
by CNB