I get canker sores. These are little sores in my mouth that last for a few days or couple weeks and hurt a lot. I have tried a lot of canker sore treatments (benzocaine, salt water, warm water, alum, triamcinolone, chamomile, oregano spirits, hydrogen peroxide, honey, B vitamins) and none of them work. Debacterol/Oralmedic does. And it’s dramatic; not “lowering from 7 days to 6 days maybe” but “massive relief immediately.”

But it’s unusual in a few ways:

• it works almost instantly
• it hurts a lot (but only briefly)
• it actually cures the sore instead of managing the pain
• nobody has heard of it

What is it?

It’s made of “50% Sulfonated Phenolics and 30% Sulfuric Acid in an Aqueous Solution.” To use it, you apply a little to a Q-tip, then put it directly on your sore. It stings terribly for 5-10 seconds, then you wash it off; the pain subsides quickly and a whitish layer forms over the sore, cauterizing it and protecting it while it heals much faster.

It’s marketed as Debacterol in the US and available via prescription, or as Oralmedic outside the US and available without a prescription. It’s manufactured by Epien Medical.

How do you get it?

Outside the US, getting Oralmedic is easy: simply order it from one of their distributors. Inside the US, Oralmedic isn’t sold, but Debacterol is available with a prescription. But getting it is a little tricky. It seems that nobody, including doctors, dentists, and pharmacies, knows that it exists.

Pharmacies

According to Epien’s customer service (customerservice@epien.com), pharmacies can order Debacterol from McKesson Drug, item #2907459, NDC 6294010103. The Epien rep I talked to said they are working to add more pharmacy suppliers, but right now it’s just McKesson. I don’t know which pharmacies can order from McKesson. Supposedly, CVS Specialty orders from McKesson, but my local CVS did not. Claude says Albertson’s and Health Mart do, Walgreens and Kroger do not. But it’s probably best to contact your pharmacy and ask.

Note that, if you find a pharmacy that can get it, you’ll need to get a prescription from your doctor or dentist. Therefore, direct ordering through your doctor may be simpler if they’re willing.

Dentists and doctors

Also according to Epien, medical professionals can order from McKesson or from Henry Schein Medical, then you can pick it up from them. I contacted two dentists about Debacterol; neither knew about it, but both looked into it and were happy to prescribe it; one of them would order it for me.

Cost

A vial with enough for about 12 treatments cost about $120. It was not covered by my insurance.

eBay

Searching Oralmedic on eBay will bring up many sellers, often from Hong Kong or Malaysia. If you’re in the US and can’t get Debacterol, or are in another country where Oralmedic isn’t available, this may work for you.