The white tongue is usually a sign of excessive bacterial growth and growth in the mouth, which has a modified succession and cells of the mouth that become trapped between the swollen papillae, generating the appearance of white plates.
In this way, the white tongue is more common when there are conditions conducive to the growth of fungi, as in people who do not have good oral hygiene and who have a weakened immune system, as in the case of babies, the elderly or patients.
However, there are other diseases that can cause white spots on the tongue, such as:
Oral thrush is the most common cause of white spots on the mouth, especially in infants, due to excessive fungal growth, however, it could also occur in adults who do not have adequate oral hygiene, which requires little antibiotic treatment, which has autoimmune diseases. , such as HIV.
This fungal infection can also be accompanied by pain, burning in the affected areas and a cottony sensation inside the mouth. Learn more about oral thrush.
What to do: You should have good oral hygiene, clean your teeth and tongue at least 2 times a day and use a mouthwash to prevent bacterial growth, if symptoms appear after 1 week, you should consult your family doctor to start using oral antifungals such as nistatin.
Lichen planus is an autoimmune disease that causes inflammation of the lining of the mouth, which could generate frequent white spots on the tongue and even inside the cheeks, as well as small painful sores similar to canker sores, as well as a burning sensation on the mouth tongue, as well as excessive sensitivity to hot, spicy or acidic foods.
What to do: If it is recommended to consult the family doctor, since there is no medicine capable of curing the lichen plan, however, the doctor may accept the use of corticosteroids, such as Triamcinolone, to relieve inflammation and pain . Using sodium lauryl sulfate-free toothpaste can also help prevent symptoms.
It is a chronic disease that causes the appearance of white plaques inside the cheeks, in some cases on the surface of the tongue, this type of plaque does not improve with the length of the tongue and does not usually cause pain.
The cause of this change is never known, but it is more common in smokers and may be related to the first signs of oral cancer.
What to do: If after 2 weeks of oral hygiene the dishes disappear from the dining room, it is important to consult a family doctor or dentist to assess the risk of signs of cancer, in the case of benign plaques the doctor may recommend the use of antivirals to perform a small surgical procedure to remove the plaques.
Syphilis is a sexually transmitted disease that can affect the mouth during unprotected oral sex, the first symptoms can take up to 3 months to appear, in these cases can also be inherited in the mouth, characteristics of the first phase of the disease. Talk more about syphilis symptoms.
What to do: Treatment should be done with a penicillin injection, so a general doctor should be consulted so that you can make the diagnosis and begin treatment. If no treatment is available, symptoms may improve after 3 weeks, but the disease will. move on to its second phase, in which it will be possible to spread throughout the body.
In most cases, this symptom is not a sign of a serious illness and could easily be treated with the right amount of water and frequent water intake; However, if the white tongue lasts longer than 2 weeks, it is accompanied by painful pain, for example, if it is advisable to consult a family doctor to assess if there is any disease and start appropriate treatment, if necessary.