Mouth ulcers, also known as aphthous ulcers, can be painful when eating, drinking or brushing teeth.
Occasional mouth ulcers are usually harmless and clear up on their own. Seek medical advice if they last longer than 3 weeks or keep coming back.
Mouth ulcers cannot be caught from someone else.
Up to 1 in 5 people get recurrent mouth ulcers.
Types of mouth ulcer
The main types of mouth ulcer are:
Minor ulcers. These are around 2-8mm in diameter and usually clear up in 10 days to 2 weeks.
Major ulcers. These are bigger and deeper, often with a raised or irregular border. This type of ulcer can take several weeks to heal and may leave a scar in themouth.
Herpetiform ulcers: This type of ulcer is a cluster of dozens of smaller sores the size of pinheads.
What causes mouth ulcers?
The exact cause of most mouth ulcers is …show more content…
When you first quit smoking, you may develop more mouth ulcers than normal, but this is temporary.
Some medications, including common painkillers, beta-blockers and some chest pain medicines may cause a reaction that leads to mouth ulcers.
What are the symptoms of mouth ulcers?
You may have a mouth ulcer if you have:
A painful sore or sores inside your mouth, on the tongue, soft palate (the back portion of the roof of your mouth), or inside your cheeks.
Sores in your mouth that are round, white, or grey in colour, with a red edge or border.
In severe mouth ulcer attacks, you may also experience:
Fever
Physical sluggishness
Swollen lymph nodes
How are mouth ulcers treated?
Pain from a mouth ulcer generally lessens in a few days and the sores usually heal without treatment in about a week or