How to diagnose stomatitis? Forms of stomatitis.

In most cases stomatitis develops in the age of 10 to 20 years. It can reoccur after a while but then the process is less painless. If a person once had stomatitis the risk of having it again one day is rather high. However, it is almost impossible to predict the frequency of stomatitis flare-ups. Usually stomatitis can occur up to 4 times a year. If a patient has old ulcers alongside with the new ones the form of stomatitis he suffers is called chronic.

About 20% of the country's population suffer stomatitis from time to time. On the other hand, it is not contagious. There is not a single matter of record of contagion.

To clear out the cause of stomatitis the dentist will have to read the case history and examine the patient's mouth cavity. Nowadays dentists do not have a single special test to reveal stomatitis. It is useless to test bacteria cultures or conduct biopsy.

Only visual examination can help. It is necessary to read the case history to find out how often ulcers appear in the mouth cavity. It is connected with the specific characters of stomatitis. It is a recurrent disease.

During the visual examination the dentist will pay special attention to the outlook of the ulcers. The first symptoms of stomatitis include reddening o the oral mucosa. Sometimes the reddening may swell and cause burning pain. If one does not start treatment at this stage the reddening will turn into an ulcer that has the following outlook:

• A small superficial oval-shaped (round-shaped) ulcer.
• There is a thin insecure grey or white film in the middle of the ulcer.
• Smooth edges of the ulcer.
• The ulcer is bordered by a slightly red halo.
• Uninjured tissues of the mucous membrane look absolutely fine.
• Newly formed ulcers can cause pain and problems with food consumption.

Another important factor is the location of the ulcers. If you have stomatitis ulcers will appear on the inside of lips and cheeks, under the tongue, at the bottom of the mouth cavity - everywhere in the mouth cavity except the tongue.

The dentist must also pay attention to the outlook of the oral mucosa near the ulcers. In case of stomatitis it looks fine. The patient does not feel any discomfort. He feels well and has no fever. Usually the disease will clear up of its own accord in about 2 weeks without complications or scars.

Forms of stomatitis.

• In most cases typical stomatitis consists of one oval or round-shaped ulcer. There are other forms of the disease.
• There may be more ulcers but usually not more than 6. Ulcers are placed far away from each other and occupy the whole mouth cavity.
• If some ulcers appear close to each other they merge into one big ulcer of irregular shape.
• The frequency of the recurrent diseases is different for every patient. Patients who suffer the typical form of stomatitis will have it several times a year. In some cases the disease can become chronic.

If you have the typical form of the disease the ulcers will be small and shallow. Unlike this form the aftosa form means that bigger and deeper ulcers will appear. It is very difficult to cure this form of stomatitis and even some scars may remain after it.