The majority of mouth ulcers are painful and can adversely affect eating and drinking.
As such, patients with mouth ulcers often present in community pharmacies.
Aphthous stomatitis (oral ulceration), which represents a full-thickness breach in the epithelium lining the soft tissues of the mouth, affects a high proportion of the population and can be the result of a wide range of conditions.
Pharmacists can ask basic questions concerning the nature of the ulceration, which can help provide a good indication about the likely cause, as well as providing patients with symptomatic relief and immediate local treatment.
► Read also: ORAL MEDICINE : A guide to common oral lesions
However, a person suspected of having an oral squamous cell carcinoma (mouth cancer) must be instructed to urgently seek the opinion of a dental practitioner or their GP.
° pharmaceutical-journal.com
° Authors : Michael A O Lewis / Nairn H F Wilson
° Image : The Sun