Tea Tree Oil and Athlete's foot
What 2 graded rows on tea tree oil agree on for Athlete's foot, and where they differ. Counted side by side, never averaged.
Consensus finder Rows from the Tea Tree Oil page, reviewed Oct 21, 2026 How it decides
What the rows agree on
Each block and row is one graded row from the Tea Tree Oil page, with its PubMed record.
Your question
Tea Tree Oil and Athlete's foot
2 rows · 262 peopleSplit. 1 row found an improvement and 1 had mixed results.
- CGrade C× 2
- Rows
- 2
- Trials
- 2
- People
- 262
What the rows share
From the rowsThe best-graded row, grade C, is a randomized trial of 158 people (2002) and found an improvement.
The rows run from 104 to 158 people, published from 1992 to 2002: 2 single studies.
The rows
1 improved · 1 mixed- CGrade CAthlete's foot (interdigital tinea pedis): clinical response and fungal clearance · Improved
RCT · n 158 · 2002 · Patients with interdigital tinea pedis confirmed by microscopy (Australia)
Applied twice daily · 4 weeks
Marked clinical response in 72% (25%) and 68% (50%) vs 39% on placebo; fungal cultures turned negative in 64% with 50% oil vs 31% on placebo. Four patients (3.8%) on tea tree oil developed moderate to severe dermatitis that resolved after stopping.
Row on the Tea Tree Oil page · PubMed 12121393 (opens PubMed)
- CGrade CAthlete's foot: fungal clearance and symptoms vs tolnaftate · Mixed
RCT · n 104 · 1992 · Patients with tinea pedis who completed the trial (Australia)
10% cream · Not stated in the abstract
Fungal cultures turned negative with tolnaftate in 85%, tea tree oil 30% and placebo 21% (tea tree oil no better than placebo). Scaling, inflammation, itching and burning improved more with tea tree oil than placebo.
Row on the Tea Tree Oil page · PubMed 1303075 (opens PubMed)