Xerostomia

Such a phenomenon as xerostomia is the appearance of dry mouth as a result of malfunctioning of the salivary glands. This unpleasant phenomenon leads to an unpleasant sensation in the mouth and other difficulties.

Xerostomia symptoms

The main symptoms of xerostomia in patients who seek help at the Amel Dental Clinic are:

• 1
  Itching and burning in the mouth
• 2
  Partial disturbance or complete absence of taste
• 3
  Having trouble talking
• 4
  Problems with swallowing food
• 5
  The need for constant drinking

In cases where there is no saliva in the mouth, it becomes difficult to wear dentures, and injuries to the soft tissues of the oral cavity become more frequent. All these symptoms lead to the need for urgent treatment by the clinic’s specialists. In addition, dentists observe a significant acceleration of carious processes in patients with this disease, which leads to the appearance of cavities that require urgent treatment.

Causes of the appearance of xerostomia

The reasons due to which xerostomia disease can manifest itself are of several types.

The most common ones are:

Some types of drugs that reduce salivation and dry mouth. More than 4 hundred such drugs are known and they are used to treat various diseases. Usually, in such cases, it is enough to stop taking the drug, and the problem will disappear, however, this must be done at the early stages of the development of pathology.

If radiation therapy is used to treat cancer, symptoms of xerostomia, such as a decrease in the amount of saliva in the mouth, may also occur. This problem can be caused by the absence of protective screens in the area of the salivary glands, if their use does not interfere with the therapy.

Complications associated with rheumatic conditions are another cause of decreased salivation and fluid imbalance in the oral cavity. This complication is called Sjogren’s syndrome and is also accompanied by dryness of the oral mucosa, which can turn into xerostomia. In the early stages, Sjogren’s syndrome causes only a slight decrease in the amount of saliva, but with its development, the salivary glands begin to work worse and worse. This syndrome can be combined with rheumatic manifestations in the body.

Another common cause of hyposalivation is age. According to dentists, older people are more likely to experience decreased salivation than younger people.

Xerostomia treatment at Amel Dental Clinic

When a patient is admitted with a complaint of signs of xerostomia, the specialists of the Amel Dental Clinic first of all find out the cause of the pathology, and only after collecting data and analysis, they prescribe a treatment that may depend on the individual characteristics of the patient’s body.

There are traditional methods for increasing saliva production, such as stimulating salivation with chewing gum, sour candy, and so on. However, this only partially relieves the discomfort and does not lead to the patient’s recovery, as well as the recommendation to drink more water.

It is necessary to use modern medicines that are prescribed by a doctor in the treatment of xerostomia and which are recognized as the most effective in this area. At the Amel clinic, the patient is prescribed treatment only with those drugs that have established themselves as effective means of combating this pathology.

Also, it is recommended to use toothpastes, rinses and gels that stimulate the salivary glands, as well as drugs that eliminate the causes of xerostomia, for example, medications that treat arthritis.

When contacting the Amel Dental Clinic, the patient is accompanied from the first appointment and diagnosis, until the completion of treatment and elimination of the causes of decreased salivation.