teeth and gums – Page 2

Ouch! I have a sore in my mouth

February 23rd, 2017 by The Hello Doctor Team

Sores inside the mouth are common for many people. They can appear on the lips, cheeks, tongue, gums, and palate. Depending on their size, severity, and location; mouth sores can make it difficult to eat, drink, swallow, talk, and breathe.

Causes

Mouth sores may develop if you:

Bite your tongue, cheek or lip.
Burn your mouth from hot food or drinks.
Brush your teeth too hard or use a toothbrush with hard bristles.
Experience irritation from a sharp or broken tooth, braces, or poorly fitted dentures.
Chew tobacco.

Mouth sores can also develop as a reaction to a medicine. Medications that often cause mouth sores are aspirin, beta-blockers, and chemotherapy.

Mouth sores can point to an illness. These include autoimmune disorders, bleeding disorders, and bacterial, viral, or fungal infections.

An infection with the herpes simplex virus is one of the most common causes of cold sores (also called fever blisters). Cold sores are red, fluid-filled blisters that form on and around the mouth. They are highly contagious and often triggered by hormonal changes, stress and sun exposure.

A weakened immune system or nutrient deficiency can also be breeding grounds for small, shallow mouth sores called canker sores. These tiny but painful sores are pale or yellow in colour with a red, inflamed outer ring. They usually form on the inside of the lips or cheeks and aren’t contagious. But they may be a symptom of a serious infection or mouth cancer.

Treatment

Mouth sores often go away naturally within 14 days, but can last up to six weeks. Reduce pain and feel better by avoiding:

Hot, spicy, salty, citrus-based foods.
Tobacco and alcohol.
Squeezing or picking at the sores or blisters.

To speed up the healing process:

Gargle regularly with salt water.
Take pain relievers or anti-inflammatory drugs.
Use a mouthwash or paste to reduce swelling.

If your mouth sore is caused by a virus, bacteria, or fungus, your doctor may prescribe medication to help treat the infection.

When to see your doctor

Get help if:

The sore lasts longer than two weeks or gets worse.
There are large white patches on the sores.
You have other symptoms like fever or difficulty swallowing.
The sore develops after starting a new medication.

References:

The ins and outs of earache

February 8th, 2017 by The Hello Doctor Team

A ringing sound in your ear? A dull ache? It may be an on-and-off pain or a persistent throbbing. Either way, an earache shouldn’t be ignored.

There are two categories of earaches to know about. A primary earache is due to some form of inner or outer ear disease. Secondary earache is due to or associated with problems elsewhere in the body, in which the pain is felt in the ear (this is known as referred pain).

Earache is very common in children, as the anatomy of their Eustachian tube makes them more susceptible to more infections. Earache is also common in children who are around smokers, and in summer, when allergies and swimming play a role.

Primary earache may be caused by conditions affecting the:

Outer ear canal: trauma, foreign bodies, infection, (otitis externa), impacted wax, malignancies, and allergies.
Middle ear (otitis media) acute or chronic infection, ruptured eardrum, and Eustachian tube dysfunction.

Have you got persistent earache? Speak to one of our doctors about how to fix it today.

You can also get an earache from:

A tooth infection.
Problems in the jaw joint (temporo-mandibular joint).
Parotid (salivary) gland disorders.
Tonsillitis, pharyngitis and sinusitis.
Cancer of the tongue, pharynx or oesophagus.

General treatment includes:

Stop smoking and keep children away from environmental cigarette smoke.
Take care to manage your allergies.
Keep the ear canals dry – for example, after swimming or hair-washing.
Avoid putting foreign objects like cotton-tipped buds into your ears.
Relieve the Eustachian tube discomfort in older children by chewing gum.
A combination of paracetamol and an anti-inflammatory (e.g. Ibuprofen) will relieve most earaches until it can be assessed by a doctor.

Quick relief
People often use ice packs or warm compresses, like a heating pad or damp washcloth, to relieve pain, and the same can be done for ear pain. This method is safe for both children and adults. Place the ice pack or warm compress over the ear.

Protect your ears

Avoid using objects to clean inside your ears. Your ears are self-cleansing. Cleaning inside your ear with an earbud, bobby pin or your fingernail may tear the skin. If you have excess ear wax build-up, have it removed by a healthcare professional.
Keep your ear canals dry: dry your ears after swimming and hair-washing, shake out excess water in your ears, wear earplugs while swimming.
Control your allergies. Inflammation caused by allergies can contribute to ear infection and ear pain.
Stop smoking and avoid exposure to second hand smoke. Cigarette smoke can increase the frequency and severity of ear infections.
Stay up to date with immunisations, including those for flu as ear infections often occur after flu.

It’s time to speak to Hello Doctor when:

You also have a fever, have recently had an upper respiratory tract infection, or if this pain is plaguing your child who is six months or younger. A fever indicates the possibility of a more serious infection.
You frequently develop otitis media; repeated bouts can lead to hearing loss or more serious infections.
You have hearing problems; the infection may be affecting hearing ability.
You feel nauseous or have bouts of diarrhoea accompanying the earache.
You have nasal congestion.
You are dizzy or imbalanced.
Your eardrum turns yellow or red and bulges.

References:

There is blood in my saliva! What now?

July 8th, 2015 by The Hello Doctor Team

There is nothing more worrying than seeing blood where there shouldn’t be blood- and blood in the saliva is one of those places. There may be small specks, or there may be quite a lot, either way it is a clear sign that there is something going on. Here are a few common causes: Continue reading “There is blood in my saliva! What now?”

3 Common oral diseases

September 12th, 2014 by The Hello Doctor Team

Finally got your pearly whites? Now let’s work on keeping them healthy and disease-free. You might not know it, but there are many conditions that affect you teeth, gums and mouth. Here are three very common conditions that you should keep an eye out for.

Dental cavities

You hear about these all the time on toothpaste adverts. They’re essentially holes in your teeth that are caused by tooth decay. This is usually a result of eating too much sugar and starch and not practicing daily dental hygiene – brushing, flossing and rinsing. When food gets stuck between your teeth – and you don’t remove it – it will lead to plaque, which hurts the enamel on your teeth. Overtime this corrodes your teeth causing a cavity. There’s no way to reverse the process, but you can get them filled if you go to a dentist. Prevent cavities by brushing and flossing your teeth twice a day.

Gum disease

Remember the plaque we spoke about earlier? Well it doesn’t just cause tooth decay, it’s also the major cause of gum disease. When plaque is left behind and hardens it becomes tartar, which can then only be removed by a dentist. The longer the plaque and tartar stay on your teeth, the more troublesome they become. If left alone, the bacteria could cause gingivitis, a form of gum disease. This leads to swollen gums that bleed easily. To fix it, simply visit your dentist for a proper cleanse and stick to basic oral hygiene.

Halitosis

Bad breath, otherwise known as halitosis, has quite a few causes. The most common cause is poor oral hygiene – this includes brushing and flossing. Unhealthy lifestyle habits, like smoking, can also contribute to bad breath. However, if you’re constantly plagued by bad breath, then it could be caused by dry mouth, gingivitis or periodontitis (an advanced form of gingivitis). Visit your dentist for an accurate diagnosis and have your mouth cleaned. Then make sure you setup an appointment every 6 months for a quick check-up.

Remember, you only get 2 sets of teeth your entire life – your milk teeth and your adult teeth. Make sure to take care of them and keep them healthy.

Sources:

nlm.nih.gov
nidcr.nih.gov

5 Steps To Beat bad breath!

August 23rd, 2014 by The Hello Doctor Team

Halitosis! That’s the medical term for bad breath – a nasty condition that affects 25% of all adults, 1 in every 4 of us. Think of three of your closest friends, and if none of them have bad breath, then maybe you’re the one. How can you tell? Instead of blowing into your cupped hands, (or in your partners face), lick the back of your hand, let it dry for a few seconds, and then smell the surface.

Bad breath is like any other body odour – it’s the result of bacteria living on or in the body giving off by-products. In your mouth, it’s a case of bacteria that normally live in there interacting with food particles to create smelly sulphur compounds. If you don’t clean properly, those bacteria build up, and next thing you know, you’re being left random gifts of breath mints on your desk every Monday.

So, here’s how to banish bad breath!

While popping a mint may mask things for a while, it won’t deal with the bacteria that are causing the problem. So, in addition to brushing your teeth regularly, you can tackle bad breath by doing the following:

Step 1: Brush your tongue

The rough surface of the tongue is home to a potentially foul-smelling combination of dead cells, food debris and bacteria – all of which contribute to bad breath.

Step 2: Stay hydrated

A dry mouth is a breeding ground for offensive-smelling bacteria.

Step 3: Avoid the over-powering ingredients

Foods like garlic and onion are well-known stinkers, so – if you do want to eat them, time it well. It can take about a day for these to fully leave your system.

Step 4: Choose bacteria busting foods

Green tea has anti-bacterial properties that knock out the stink, and cinnamon contains essential oils that kill many types of oral bacteria.

Step 5: Eat crisp fruits and vegetables

Celery and apples are good examples. Chewing these produces more saliva in your mouth, and the firm texture also helps scrub away bacteria.

If you do all that and your bad breath still persists, get hold of your doctor to make sure it isn’t a sign of something more serious, as certain chronic diseases can release chemicals into the body that result in bad breath. In most cases, taking simple steps to control the chemistry lab living inside your mouth will keep you smelling minty fresh, for most of the day anyway!

5 Drinks that stain your teeth

August 14th, 2014 by The Hello Doctor Team

It works for your general health, and also it works for keeping your smile bright and shiny: prevention is better than cure. Sure, you can go for expensive cleaning treatments every few months, but knowing (and managing) what stains your teeth in the first place just makes more sense.

The main culprits:

Black coffee. The darker the drink, the more staining-potential it has. Add some milk to reduce the staining effect.
Black tea – the same rule applies. If you can’t add milk, don’t make the brew too strong.
Wine. Bet you didn’t know this, but both white and red wines have tooth-staining potential. While red wine stains teeth, the acid in white wine etches tiny grooves in the enamel, making it easier for teeth to get stained.
Fizzy and sports drinks. These beverages are highly acidic, which means they make it easier for teeth to get stained by other foods.
Fruit juices. Cranberry, grape, pomegranate and berry juices carry a lot of pigment which can stain. If you drink them, drink with a straw or rinse your mouth afterwards.

Drink them – the black tea, the juice and the wine – but rinse out with water afterwards.