Mouth ulcer

Mouth ulcer
Other names	Oral ulcer, mucosal ulcer
A mouth ulcer (in this case associated with aphthous stomatitis) on the labial mucosa (lining of the lower lip)
Specialty	Gastroenterology; Oral medicine
Causes	Chemicals such as SLS (a common ingredient in many toothpastes) have been linked to mouth ulcers, and have been recognized by public health agencies such as the NHS as a risk factor.; infections (e.g. herpes viruses); injuries (e.g. biting of the lip, tongue, and cheek, hard foods can scrape the oral tissues, hot foods can cause burns); Nutritional disorders (e.g., vitamin deficiencies); Possibly heavy metals, of which cadmium occurs in phosphate rock; Emotional stress is commonly associated with recurrent ulcers.
Diagnostic method	Traumatic ulceration; Aphthous stomatitis; Infection; Drug-induced; Malignancy; Vesiculobullous disease; Allergy
Treatment	Smoothing or removing a local cause of trauma; addressing dry mouth; substituting a problem medication or switching to SLS-free toothpaste; A topical analgesic (e.g. benzydamine mouthwash) to reduce pain Topical (gels, creams or inhalers) or systemic steroids may be used to reduce inflammation; Topical (gels, creams or inhalers) or systemic steroids may be used to reduce inflammation; an antifungal drug may be used to prevent oral candidiasis developing in those who use prolonged steroids; people with mouth ulcers may prefer to avoid hot or spicy foods, which can increase the pain; self-inflicted ulceration can be difficult to manage, and psychiatric input may be required in some people; for recurrent ulcers, vitamin B12 has been shown to be effective; benzocaine; levonordefrin

A mouth ulcer (aphtha) is an ulcer that occurs on the mucous membrane of the oral cavity.^[1] Mouth ulcers are very common, occurring in association with many diseases and by many different mechanisms, but usually there is no serious underlying cause. Rarely, a mouth ulcer that does not heal may be a sign of oral cancer. These ulcers may form individually or multiple ulcers may appear at once (i.e., a "crop" of ulcers). Once formed, an ulcer may be maintained by inflammation and/or secondary infection.

The two most common causes of oral ulceration are local trauma (e.g. rubbing from a sharp edge on a broken filling or braces, biting one's lip, etc.) and aphthous stomatitis ("canker sores"), a condition characterized by the recurrent formation of oral ulcers for largely unknown reasons. Mouth ulcers often cause pain and discomfort and may alter the person's choice of food while healing occurs (e.g. avoiding acidic, sugary, salty or spicy foods and beverages).