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A mouth sore is a small, shallow sore that can appear on any of the soft tissues, floor and roof of your mouth, on lips and cheeks or at the base of your gums. In some cases, you can develop sores on the oesophagus, the tube leading to your stomach. Mouth sores are generally harmless and last for about two weeks. However, in extreme cases, they can be a sign of mouth cancer.
You must consult a doctor if you experience sores that are more than half an inch in diameter, rashes, joint pains, diarrhoea or fever. Mouth sores can occur if you bite your tongue, cheek or lip, chew tobacco, brush your teeth too hard or use a very hard bristled tooth brush. They may also occur if you have braces, retainers or dentures. Minor mouth sores go away naturally but major ones might need to be treated.
Mouth ulcers or sores usually develop on the soft tissue region in the mouth including lips, tongue, cheeks, gums, and floor as well as the roof of the mouth. These may be a result of weakened immunity or exposure to the herpes simplex virus.
Mouth ulcers appear as round or oval-shaped sores. These are with a white or yellow-colored center, surrounded by a red border of inflamed tissue.
Summary: Mouth sores appear round or oval-shaped with a white or yellow colored center surrounded by a red border. These look like small bumps on the soft tissue or mucosa inside the oral cavity.
Mouth sores are not always serious. Mild cases are accompanied by the appearance of small-sized sores which are not recurrent. These are not as painful and get healed spontaneously without undergoing treatment. On the other hand, there are cases associated with serious symptoms of mouth sores.
The size of the sores in such cases are larger i.e more than half an inch. These larger sores being painful cause difficulty in eating, swallowing, breathing, or speech. They show frequent outbreaks as well as recurrence and may be associated with fever or diarrhoea and rashes.
Summary: Mouth sores get resolved easily when accompanied by mild symptoms. But it becomes serious and recurrent when the symptoms are severe including the larger size of the sores associated with pain, fever, diarrhoea, and difficulty in breathing, eating, or swallowing.
There can be several reasons which can cause mouth sores and the usual reason can be:
There can be some other causes as well that can also cause mouth sores:
Healing of mouth sores usually takes 10 to 14 days in mild cases. But when the condition varies from being moderate to severe, it may take around six or more weeks to recover. Such cases do not resolve spontaneously and require serious treatment under the supervision of a doctor.
Mouth sores occur again and again and do not go away in the following conditions:
Summary: Mouth sores are recurrent in some conditions including the prolonged wearing of dentures, braces or retainers, repetitive biting of the tongue, lips, or cheeks, or frequent exposure to the herpes simplex virus. Elimination of causative factors is important to prevent a recurrence.
Though mouth sores can get treated on their own and needs a bit of handling sometimes they can get worse, thus the real reason needs to be diagnosed. These are situations for which you should need to go to the doctor:
Consultation with a doctor or dentist is not required in all cases of mouth sores. Mild cases get recovered easily within 10 to 14 days without seeing a doctor. However, severe cases need the same. Following are the indications for urgent medical attention in case of mouth sores:
Summary: Mild cases of mouth sores are resolved easily without any treatment, but cases other than that should undergo on-time treatment under the supervision of a doctor or dentist. Delayed treatment may lead to complications like mouth cancer.
In the first stage of healing, ulcers are not yet formed and are associated with the presence of a burning or prickling type of sensations in the affected area. This is known as the prodromal stage which marks the beginning of the ulcer's healing.
The second stage is characterized by an increase in the size of the formed ulcer. This is the painful phase in which ulcers are formed having a yellow-grey center and surrounded by the red border. In the next and final stage, the pain subsides and the ulcer starts to shrink as a result of the healing process.
Mouth sores get treated by themselves within 10-14 days and they last up to six weeks. They get healed by themselves but if it is taking much time then you can do some treatments for them to be healed:
Make sure that you consume a healthy and balanced diet while avoiding junk food. Avoid very hot food and drinks. Chew the food slowly. Do not smoke or chew tobacco.
Drink plenty of your water to hydrate your body and mouth. Use a soft-bristled toothbrush and brush your teeth gently. Protect your skin from the harmful UV rays of the sun while stepping out.
Mouth sores are one of the commonly faced ailments occurring on the soft tissue region of the mouth including lips, gums, cheeks, tongue, etc. These are associated with pain and inflammation.
Difficulty in eating, drinking, breathing, or speech is a common symptom that can be overcome easily over a certain time period. However, the following are the symptoms that can make us worry and require a doctor’s consultation:
Summary: Mouth sores are a common ailment affecting mainly soft tissue parts in the mouth such as the tongue, lips, cheeks, gums, etc. These are associated with pain and inflammation and are quite treatable depending upon the severity of symptoms.
Most mouth sores go naturally in some time. If you do not want to go through medications, you can wait for them to disappear on their own.
These are the ways in which mouth ulcers can be prevented:
Mouth ulcers can be prevented by the consumption of immunity-boosting herbs and adequate vitamins in the form of supplements. These should be incorporated into the regular diet so as to strengthen the immune system and prevent mouth sores-like conditions. Some of the preferred vitamins, as well as herbs, include:
Summary: Prevention of mouth ulcers is possible by incorporating vitamins and herbs as supplements in our regular diet. These boost the immune system and enhance the resistance of our body against mouth sores like infections.
The time period of recovery depends on the severity of your condition. Most sores go away in about two weeks.
One session of consultation with a doctor may cost you between ₹200 - ₹600. The cost of acetaminophen may be around ₹100 per 500ml.
Mouth sores may occur again if you go through the same conditions again.
These are the ways in which we can get rid of mouth sores at home:
Summary: Mouth sores are a commonly occurring ailment, characterized by the presence of sores or ulcers in the soft tissue area of the mouth including lips, cheeks, tongue, etc. These are quite painful and discomforting. The condition can heal spontaneously in case of mild symptoms while symptoms in moderate or severe cases require urgent medical care and attention.
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