The incidence of recurrence of angular cheilitis following a successful antimicrobial treatment was studied in 48 patients. Clinical assessments including a microbial examination were carried out 8 months and 5 yr after termination of treatment. Eighty percent of the patients reported recurrence of their angular cheilitis on one or more occasions during the observation period. Patients with cutaneous disorders associated with dry skin or intraoral leukoplakia had an increased incidence of recrudescence. Neither the presence of denture stomatitis nor the type of microorganisms isolated from the original lesions of angular cheilitis, i.e. Candida albicans and/or Staphylococcus aureus, were associated with the number of recurrences. The present observations indicate that treatment of the majority of patients with angular cheilitis should be considered in a longer perspective than previously supposed, due to the short lasting therapeutic effects of the antimicrobial therapy.