Q: Good day Doc. May God bless and uplift you for your assistance to humanity. Doc., I have been experiencing a persistent ulcer in the mouth for some years now which appears as a small and whitish spot in different positions of my mouth ranging from the tongue to inner section of the lip. Initially I thought it was caused by the toothpaste I used, but I later discover that it was not from the toothpaste after changing toothpastes several times. Sometimes it can take up to month before it appears again. Please Doc. what are the causes if this and its treatments?
A: Amen and Amen to your prayers! 😀

And to your question…

There are a couple of causes mouth sores with or without whitish spots. I’ll briefly mention 3:

There is oral thrush or oral candidiasis. This is a fungal (yeast) infection and is common in people with compromised immune system. For this reason, it is common at the extremes of ages: the young and the old. It is also common in people who have just used antibiotics, people with dry mouths, people who wear dentures, diabetics etc People with this condition usually have creamy or whitish sores in their mouths. Treatment depends on the cause eg regular cleaning of dentures and removing them at night, good oral hygiene etc Taking yoghurt with probiotics may also help.

Cold sores which are also called fever blisters are caused by a virus, Herpes Simplex. They typically occur around the mouth or under the nose and may recur in people who have had them when they have a fever, are emotionally upset etc. Treatment can be with anti-viral drugs or it can be left well alone and it will disappear after a couple of days. Local anesthetic drugs may help reduce the pain of the sores.

Tongue irritation can lead to a condition called Leukoplakia in which there are white patches in the mouth and on the tongue which cannot be wiped out. It is usually found in people who use tobacco products of any kind and may eventually be associated with cancer.

In your case, this situation has been on and off for a while. It is important to get a doctor to check you out and confirm the exact cause as soon as possible.

Goodnight, good people 😀