Tongue
Sores and Ulcers
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DEFINITION
Tongue sores or ulcers can vary from being a
minor nuisance to unbearable ongoing agony. By definition an ulcer is an area of
open sore that is white or yellow in color and is surrounded by a bright red
margin. Tongue sores and ulcers fall into two main categories cold
sores (viral induced) and canker sores (other ulcers)
COLD SORES
These are caused by a virus similar to chicken pox (Herpes Simplex Virus).
Outbreaks are usually preceded by small blisters called vesicles, they can
also be preceded by temperature or fever up to one to two days prior.
Sometimes cold sores are accompanied with drooling and difficulty in
swallowing. They usually occur on the outside of the mouth although
sometimes they can occur on the inside of the mouth. When this happens,
fever blisters appear usually on the roof of the mouth. The cold sores will
then develop on the tongue or the cheeks. After a few days they can break
spreading their contents. They are very contagious at this time. Also they
are very painful.
CANKER SORES
The other type of mouth ulcer is called Canker sores. These occur strictly
inside the mouth. They are not contagious and they are not caused by a
virus. They usually occur as a result of allergy to either foods, or
medicines or toothpaste ingredients. Also they can occur as a result of
local trauma, from dentures, bones or even pretzels. If you
scratch or break the skin you can be prone to canker sores. Although the
vast majority of canker sore cases are associated with no underlying
illness, in a small percentage of cases, canker sores are indicative of a
bodily (systemic) disorder. People with Behcet's Disease, for instance, will
often have canker sores in addition to genital lesions, eye lesions, and
general skin afflictions. Many people with digestive conditions such as
celiac disease, Crohn's Disease, Ulcerative Colitis, gluten hypersensitivity
will also display canker sores as a manifestation of their underlying
disorder. HIV infected patients may also develop canker sore like ulcers. In
the small percentage of cases where an underlying condition may be
suspected, a careful medical history and examination by a physician will be
able to indicate whether canker sores in a particular patient are associated
with an underlying disorder.
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