Aims: This work examines the available scientific evidence about the efficiency of essential oils (EO) as an alternative therapy to traditional treatment of fungal infections, including onychomycosis, assessing the effect of the three EO most frequently studied for their antifungal activity (thyme, cinnamon and tea tree EO) against three causative agents of fungal diseases in humans: Trichophyton rubrum, Trichophyton mentagrophytes complex and Candida albicans.
Methods and results: The PRISMA statement protocol was followed to conduct a bibliographical search and 54 articles that met all the inclusion criteria were retrieved. Differences were observed in the MIC and MFC values depending on the micro-organism strain and the EO used. The lowest MIC were observed with Cinnamomum zeylanicum EO (0.013-1120 μl ml-1 ) against the three micro-organisms. For MFC, the lowest value was found for Thymus vulgaris EO (4.2 μl ml-1 ) against Trichophyton rubrum.
Conclusions: The antifungal effects of EO could be a very promising solution to overcome the therapeutic shortcomings of antimycotic medication. More experiments are needed to examine the properties of these oils to devise effective and nonaggressive therapies for treatment of dermatophytosis.
Significance and impact of study: The results indicate that EO remain good candidates for future treatments and could provide a solution for failed medications and/or adverse reactions to current pharmacological treatments.
Keywords: Candida albicans; Cinnamomum zeylanicum; Melaleuca alternifolia; Thymus vulgaris; Trichophyton rubrum; Trichophyton mentagrophytes complex; antifungal treatment; dermatophytosis.
© 2022 The Authors. Journal of Applied Microbiology published by John Wiley & Sons Ltd on behalf of Society for Applied Microbiology.