The antibacterial properties of tea tree oil have now been well documented, and there are susceptibility data on a wide range of bacteria. However, there has been no scientific basis for claims that tea tree oil has anti-inflammatory properties. It was therefore essential that scientifically valid data showing tea tree oil as an effective anti-inflammatory product be produced both to satisfy requirements of regulatory authorities and to enable further expansion of other international markets. It was reasoned that rigid scientific evidence of tea tree oil as an anti-inflammatory agent would increase its acceptance for treatment of conditions such as acne, eczema and insect bites and perhaps burns and gingivitis, i.e. conditions in which the inflammatory response, as well as the offending organism/agent, require control.