Mouth ulcers

A mouth ulcer is an open sore which can be painful. They can be found anywhere within the oral cavity including the lips.

The most common causes of mouth ulcers are:

1. Trauma e.g. irritation due to rubbing of a filling, a broken tooth, or orthodontic braces
2. Recurrent aphthous stomatitis (recurrent ulceration)
3. Cold sores (herpes labialis), commonly found on the lips or around the mouth

Symptoms

There could be some of the following factors associated with mouth ulcer(s):

• Trauma (mechanical, thermal or chemical)
• Stress
• Iron deficiency
• Vit B12 deficiency
• Some certain foods make ulcers worse e.g. some types of chocolate, coffee, fizzy drinks, potato chips or spicy/hot foods.
• Certain medications, sometimes multiple medications
• And others

What it may need

Remove the trauma e.g. remove the sharp edge of the tooth or have the broken tooth repaired. In an emergency sitaution, a nail file or sandpaper can be used to smooth the sharp edge of a tooth. Please contact our dental clinic to have the broken tooth repaired or removed.

Good oral hygiene can help prevent mouth ulcers. This includes brushing twice daily, flossing, and having regular dental checks (from $189) and hygienist cleans (from $129-259) at Gardens Dental.

A blood test can eliminate a deficiency.

You could speak to your GP to see if your medication is causing ulceration, and an alternative can be taken.

Will the ulcers disappear?

Most mouth ulcers last 7-14 days. If it is a traumatic ulcer due to a broken tooth, once this has been fixed, the ulcer should naturally disappear.

If the mouth ulcer has not gone within 3 weeks and there does not appear to be any obvious cause, please book in to see me for a consultation ($189), as it could be something that requires further investigation or referral to a specialist.