Oral stomatitis

Stomatitis is an inflammatory disease of the oral mucosa, which is characterized by various symptoms and can be either an independent disease or a manifestation of any serious pathology of the organ or organism as a whole. It is scientifically proven that almost all pathological changes in the oral cavity are often signs of metabolic disorders, decreased immunity (stress) or various other diseases of the body. They can be a viral infection, fungal or bacterial.

The mucous membrane of the oral cavity is resistant to many external factors: chemical, physical, thermal and is well restored. That is why, the faster you go to the doctor, and he diagnoses which stomatitis you have, the faster the inflammation will pass. And vice versa, the longer you drag out and the process develops into a chronic or acute (necrotic) phase, the more difficult it will be to cure.

A feature of the manifestation of stomatitis in the oral cavity is that the disease appears very quickly, worsens overall well-being (often with temperature) and is accompanied by soreness, both when eating and at rest.

Manifestations of stomatitis

Stomatitis manifests itself in a variety of ways: from small vesicles on the mucosa to huge ulcers that leave scars when healing. As a rule, the patient complains of burning of the oral mucosa, itching, soreness when brushing teeth or eating food.

Visually mucous red, slightly swollen. Salivation increases. Often the temperature rises and the lymph nodes increase.

If you see any of the above at your place, consult a doctor immediately. Stomatitis is an insidious disease that should be treated by a specialist.

Causes of stomatitis

The main causes of stomatitis can be:

• lack of B vitamins
• mucosal injuries (poor-quality fillings or poor-quality fixed or removable dentures, too hard food, eating too hot food or too acidic)
• decreased immunity after any illness or stress
• violation of hygiene rules (insufficient washing of hands and / or products)
• allergic reactions of the body (either to prostheses of the oral cavity, or various drugs, including sodium lauryl sulfate in toothpaste)
• frequent antibiotic use
• complications after diseases of the gastrointestinal tract
• as a concomitant disease, viral, bacterial or fungal (herpes, scarlet fever and so on).

Features of the course of stomatitis in children

If you see that your child is capricious and his temperature rises (especially when teething), it will not be superfluous to look into his oral cavity and be convinced of the presence or absence of a bright red gum or white spots on the mucous membrane.

If you noticed on time, then you can see small bubbles that burst almost in a day and form white aft with a red border.

Most often, in childhood, such stomatitis occurs:

• infants up to a year - candidal stomatitis
• from a year to 3 years - aphthous stomatitis
• older children - aphthous and allergic stomatitis.

The most common stomatitis

Herpetic stomatitis. It is caused by the herpes simplex virus. It occurs against the background of a decrease in immunity and it is inherent in seasonality (winter-spring; summer-autumn) and is characterized by the appearance of small vesicles on the mucosa, which burst and form aphthae.

Aphthae, in turn, can merge into one large erosive aphtha. It is accompanied by severe pain, itching and burning of the oral mucosa.

Bacterial stomatitis - more often occurs with infection of the mucosa with staphylococcus, streptococcus, which is characterized by the appearance of purulent sores, tongue lining, often cracked corners of the mouth.

Allergic stomatitis - appears as a reaction of the body to an allergen, which subsequently leads to infection of the oral mucosa. Most often manifested by roseola (redness of the mucosa), swelling, burning.

Candidiasis stomatitis - most often occurs after prolonged use of strong antibiotics that disrupt the microflora of the body. It is characterized by the presence of a whitish plaque on the mucosa, which, when removed, forms very painful ulcers.

Manifestations of stomatitis

According to the course and external manifestations, stomatitis can conditionally be divided into the following types.

Catarrhal (or initial) - characterized by redness of the oral mucosa in the form of spots (roseol), which causes some discomfort (these are the primary elements of stomatitis). At the initial stage, as a rule, the temperature does not increase. If you do not consult a specialist at this stage, then catarrhal stomatitis can go into a more complex form.

Ulcerative necrotic (purulent) - appears when the immune system weakens and passes a secondary infection of the oral mucosa. Deep aphthae, ulcers appear on the mucosa, which are made of serous or purulent contents and are surrounded by a bright red border around. The edges of the edging rise above the mucosa. Such symptoms are characteristic for this phase: fever, swollen lymph nodes, headache, burning mouth, and excessive salivation. The treatment of such stomatitis is long (from two weeks or more) and expensive.

If this form of stomatitis is not treated, the disease usually spreads to other organs and systems.

Chronic recurrent aphthous stomatitis (CRAS) is another form of stomatitis that is just as dangerous as the previous ones. It often appears with a decrease in immunity and in the presence of any diseases of the gastrointestinal tract. Its nature is not yet fully understood. From the name of the disease, we can see that this is a chronic infection, often recurring (recurring), the elements of damage to the oral mucosa are numerous aphthae on the tongue, cheeks, hard and soft palate, which in the acute phase merge into one large, very painful (usually on the palate ) aft. Often the temperature rises. To prevent XPA, it is necessary to cure chronic diseases and increase immunity.

Stomatitis treatment

In the treatment of stomatitis, it is first necessary to diagnose the type of stomatitis and its form. Treatment depends on the speed of contacting a doctor, the presence of primary or secondary rashes on the oral mucosa and many other factors.

In the treatment of bacterial stomatitis, sowing is done to determine microflora and antibiotics are prescribed and, in parallel, probiotics to restore microflora. Also, anti-inflammatory and analgesic drugs or solutions. At the same time, keratoplasty and antipyretic drugs are prescribed.

In the treatment of herpetic stomatitis, antiviral drugs, anti-inflammatory, anesthetic ointments or sprays are prescribed. Often in our practice we use laser or ozone therapy. This allows you to anesthetize wounds and prolong the action of keratoplastics (mucosal regenerators).

In the treatment of candidal stomatitis - sowing is performed to determine mycoses. Then, as a rule, a special diet (absence of light carbohydrates), antifungal drugs, and immunocorrectors are prescribed.

XRAS treatment - antihistamines, special diet, immunocorrector, keratoplasty and painkillers sprays or ointments.

Treating allergic stomatitis - basically, eliminating the allergen solves the problem. In parallel, antihistamines (antiallergic) are prescribed and symptomatic treatment is used.

Stomatitis prevention

Prevention will allow us to avoid relapses and for this we need to follow only a few rules every day:

• hygiene procedures (wash hands)
• sanitation of the oral cavity (lack of carious teeth and dental deposits, high-quality orthopedic designs)
• healthy and balanced diet
• thorough individual oral hygiene (replacement of toothbrushes 1 time in 3 months)
• professional hygiene at the dentist (2 times a year).