Canker Sore - Symptoms, Causes and Prevention

Canker Sore in Urdu

 آپ بیماری سے تقریبا ہر کوئی ہی اپنی زندگی میں ایک بار ضرور متاثر ہوتا ہے۔ یہ گول ذخم ہوتے ہیں جن کی بائونڈری سرمئی رنگ کی ہو سکتی ہے۔ یہ عموما ایک ہفتے میں ٹھیک ہو جاتے ہیں۔

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Summary about Canker Sore in English

The proper term used for this condition in medical circles is ‘aphthous ulcers’. Moreover, canker sores are also known as mouth ulcers.  These occur in the mouth’s inner lining. In the initial stages, canker sores appear as whitish ulcers with a red area around them and are typically quite small. However, they graduate to a much bigger size. These sores, or ulcers, could make eating problematic and talking difficult and could cause a reasonable amount of pain.

Symptoms of Canker Sore

The pain experienced when the person has canker sores is localized around the sore itself, which is easily irritable. This could make the person tired and constantly irritated and wary of having the sores.

Canker sores can be identified and felt in the following ways:

  • They are distinct round patches that have a less than 1 centimeter diameter. They do not appear deep in the lining, but rather on the surface.
  • The skin might tingle before the appearance.
  • The sore center is yellowish white or gray with a reddish inflamed boundary around it.
  • As time progresses, the ulcer typically fades to gray.
  • The ulcers could appear on multiple parts; it could appear in the mouth’s most front area. It could also appear on the floor or the lips’ inner portion or the inner cheeks. These sores could even show up on or near the tongue area.
  • It might have an effect on the gums and/or, in ever rarer circumstances, the surface at the back of the mouth.
  • Once they heal, the sores usually do not completely subside for at least 7 to 14 days.

There could appear further symptoms if the case is sever. For example, the person might feel very lazy and have a noticeable fever.


Causes of Canker Sore

Experts still have not identified the exact causes behind canker sores and this identification is made even harder by the fact that people who do have canker sores usually show no signs of any other potentially causal problem.

While both environmental and genetic factors are suggested, experts have not yet clarified the exact contributions or causes. Nevertheless, there are a few factors that experts have suggested that could cause the outbreaks in people who are already vulnerable. These factors include any injury to the mouth, the hormonal fluctuations experienced during the menstrual cycle. Stress-filled life and initially giving up smoking could also cause the condition to show up.

Other than that, ironic or Vitamin deficiency (especially B12) is also linked to canker sore outbreak. Doctors have also identified certain toothpastes and drugs that could play a contributory role.

Risk Factors of Canker Sore

Canker sores can occur in anyone; however, they are more common in teenagers and females. Many times, those who have canker sores usually have multiple members in the family that suffer from this condition as well. So, this fact means that heredity along with certain environmental factors could also play an important role in a person’s vulnerability to canker sores.

Preventive Measures of Canker Sore

The question of what can be done to prevent canker sores in the first place has no clear answer. As to how canker sores could be prevented, there is no clear-cut answer as the causes are yet to be properly pinpointed. One could still aim at the risk factors in order to avoid the outbreak or at least the condition from worsening. 

One could prevent canker sore symptoms or at least lessen their severity by avoiding spicy and/or sticky foods, or those foods that could stick inside the mouth, like chips. One could also stay away from toothbrushes that have hard bristles or from brushing their teeth so hard that they make a traumatizing contact with the sores.

Types of Canker Sore

Experts have categorized canker sores along three separate groups.

  • Minor Canker Sores. While these can cause a lot of pain, they take not more than 14 days, from the day they appear, to completely heal and the size also does not pass the 0.5 or even 0.3 inch mark. These canker sores are also known as ‘simple’ canker sores.
  • Major Canker Sores. These are the mouth ulcers that are bigger than the minor canker sores and typically take more than 14 days to heal. They also have more irregular boundaries. In some rare cases, they might leave some scarring. Normally these appear in individuals whose immune systems are suppressed or are going through a ‘down-phase’. These canker sores are also called ‘complex’ canker sores.
  • Herpetiform Canker Sores. Herpetiform canker sores are characterized by many small lesions appearing to group together into a big sore. They can take around 7 to 30 days to resolve fully.

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