Palatal donor site management using tissue adhesives with adjunctive coconut oil in a randomized clinical trial

Management of the complications occurring in the donor area after epithelialized gingival graft (EGG) harvesting still poses a challenge for clinicians. This study aimed to evaluate the influence of gelatin sponge (GS), cyanoacrylate (CY), and coconut oil (CO) combination in comparison with GS + CY in donor site management. Fifty EGG were harvested from the lateral palate in 50 patients, who were subsequently randomized to receive the GS + CY (control) or GS + CY + CO combination (test). Postoperative pain perception (PP), quantity of analgesics (QA), epithelization level (EL), color match (CM), sensation loss (SL), postoperative discomfort (PD), and delayed bleeding (DB) were evaluated. The GS + CY + CO group showed lower PP scores compared to the GS + CY (p < 0.05). The QA intake was similar in both groups. On day 14, the GS + CY + CO group achieved 80% full EL rate, which was higher than the GS + CY group (32%) (p = 0.002). CM scores were higher in the GS + CY + CO group at all follow-up periods (p < 0.001). Both groups reported similar SL, PD, and DB values (p > 0.05). GS + CY + CO combination is more effective in reducing pain compared to GS + CO in donor site management after EGG harvesting. Additionally, GS + CY + CO combination may accelerate epithelialization and improve color match compared to GS + CY alone.Clinical Trial Registration: ClinicalTrials.gov: NCT06583226.