Stomatitis in pregnancy

Stomatitis during pregnancy is an insidious disease that affects not only adults and children, but also every second pregnant woman. Let's figure out how to treat stomatitis and consider whether stomatitis can harm the future baby.

Pregnancy is one of the most beautiful states in a woman's life. Life has been born in your body, you are a whole universe for some little creature. And not just some undefined creature, but one that is filled with your blood, your genes, filled with everything that is in you.

Pregnancy is a miracle of nature, because a woman ceases to be who she was before conceiving a child. The body is renewed, its usual state and self-perception change. A hormonal surge and a change in hormonal levels occur.

Of course, at certain periods of pregnancy, a woman feels that everything is bad, that nausea, vomiting and pain throughout the body are unbearable, but it is always worth remembering the end result - the birth of a little person who will call you mom and will look at you with your eyes and love you devotedly.

Sometimes it happens that during pregnancy women develop various diseases, some of which can negatively affect both the mother herself and the course of pregnancy or, even worse, the unborn baby. However, most diseases that occur during pregnancy will not cause much harm if treated correctly.

The reason for the appearance of stomatitis is quite predictable - these are changes in hormonal levels. And as a result of a decrease in immunity, its protective properties, the mucous membrane loses its ability to fight infection. In order to become a carrier of stomatitis during pregnancy, a little exposure to factors that contribute to the proliferation of infectious microorganisms on the mucous membrane is enough. As a result - stomatitis, with inflammation and ulcers.

Stomatitis during pregnancy requires immediate treatment, this disease cannot be neglected. Therefore, at the first signs of stomatitis, immediately consult a doctor. Remember that stomatitis is not only painful wounds that do not allow you to calmly enjoy your pregnancy, but also an infection that can cause complications during pregnancy or childbirth. Stomatitis during pregnancy always manifests itself in the same way: inflammation in the oral cavity, redness of the palate, lips and cheeks. Later, erosion and ulcers form at the site of redness. Ulcers look like white spots with a coating with a red border.

Statistics show that almost every second mother develops stomatitis. This is due to the fact that during pregnancy, as was said above, the woman's hormonal background is disrupted, immunity is often weakened and this contributes to the emergence and very fruitful development of diseases in the woman's body. First of all, the mucous membranes can suffer, which is proven by the frequent occurrence of stomatitis in pregnant women.

Stomatitis in pregnant women can cause sores and ulcers to appear on the oral mucosa. They not only disturb the comfort of the expectant mother, but can also have a rather negative effect on the course of pregnancy, since if the infection spreads, there is a risk of harm to the fetus. But with timely and, what is equally important, correct treatment of stomatitis, you can get rid of the dangers that stomatitis carries. You should not be afraid of the first symptoms of stomatitis, but you should not take the disease calmly either. The attending physician can cope with stomatitis, he will select the correct course of treatment that will not harm the health of the mother and the future baby. If stomatitis appears in pregnant women, you should immediately consult a doctor and not self-medicate, so as not to harm the baby.

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Causes of Stomatitis During Pregnancy

Since stomatitis has many forms and pathogens, there are many reasons for its occurrence.

Many of the causes of stomatitis during pregnancy indicate insufficiently good and thorough oral hygiene. Common dental problems, such as the appearance and accumulation of plaque or tartar, can also influence the development of this disease. No less dangerous for women are mechanical damage to the oral mucosa, such as punctures, cuts, chemical or thermal burns of the oral mucosa. If your diet rarely includes foods containing B vitamins and various minerals, they can also contribute to the development of stomatitis during pregnancy. With dysbacteriosis or various diseases of the body systems, such as the cardiovascular, gastrointestinal, pulmonary, and nervous systems, as well as diabetes and tuberculosis, the risk of contracting stomatitis during pregnancy is very high. In addition to the above reasons, there are at least two more, oral thrush or intoxication of the body.

Causes of stomatitis during pregnancy are infections that affect the weakened immune system of a pregnant woman. Causes of stomatitis can be viral, fungal or bacterial infections. Let's take a closer look at the causes of stomatitis during pregnancy:

• Allergic reactions to food or hygiene products, such as toothpaste. Sometimes a pregnant woman may not even suspect that such seemingly ordinary things can cause such an unpleasant disease as stomatitis.
• Bacterial infection in the oral cavity that occurs due to failure to observe basic hygiene rules. Weakened immune system due to smoking or incorrect positioning of dentures.
• Irritation of the oral mucosa when smoking or eating acidic foods.
• Chronic diseases such as Behcet's syndrome, leukemia, vitamin deficiency, iron deficiency in the blood. All of these can cause stomatitis during pregnancy.
• Viral infections of the oral cavity, resulting in herpetic stomatitis.
• Fungal infections of the oral cavity - thrush or candidal stomatitis. This disease most often affects small children.
• Taking medications: antibiotics, drugs for radiotherapy, chemotherapy and treatment of malignant tumors.

All of these can cause stomatitis during pregnancy. To avoid this disease, minimize the factors that can cause stomatitis.

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Symptoms of Stomatitis During Pregnancy

What are the symptoms of stomatitis in pregnant women? In order to understand what is happening to your body, you should periodically examine your oral cavity. If you notice that some discomfort has appeared in your mouth, you feel with your tongue or observe in the mirror some abnormal bulges, unevenness - perhaps you have acquired stomatitis during pregnancy. The first sign of stomatitis is considered to be a slight reddening of the mucous membrane of the palate, the inner part of the lips or cheeks, which is aggravated by an unpleasant burning sensation. However, initially these symptoms are always missed by women and attributed to some other irritant. When the first ulcers appear in the mouth - this is a signal for action, namely, a call to go to the hospital. If you have stomatitis, the doctor will see small redness, erosion, white spots with a clearly defined outline and a red stripe on the oral mucosa, and around - at first glance, a completely healthy mucosa. When diagnosing stomatitis in pregnant women, the main thing is to determine the cause of its occurrence, which will help prescribe the most effective and safe treatment for mother and child.

Symptoms of stomatitis during pregnancy are absolutely the same as symptoms of stomatitis in any other person or child. The first symptom of stomatitis is redness of the mucous membrane of the palate, lips, cheeks, severe burning and tingling in these areas. After redness and burning, the erosion process begins, and ulcers appear. When examining the affected area, you can see a white spot with plaque, which is bordered by a red stripe. If you observe all of the above in yourself, then, unfortunately, you have stomatitis. You should immediately consult a doctor to choose a course of treatment and identify the cause of stomatitis.

Signs and symptoms of stomatitis depend entirely on the cause of the disease. But almost all manifestations of stomatitis have common features.

The main symptoms of stomatitis during pregnancy are the following:

• Discomfort and sharp pain while eating.
• Painful ulcers appear on the mucous membrane of the oral cavity, lips, tongue, inner surface of the cheeks and palate. The ulcers can be from one to ten millimeters in diameter.
• The tongue becomes very sensitive, it hurts even to talk.
• Increased salivation and bad breath.
• Redness of the oral mucosa or its individual areas.
• Elevated body temperature.

Sometimes, the main symptoms of stomatitis during pregnancy are accompanied by symptoms of other diseases that the pregnant woman is carrying.

• Let's look at how to recognize stomatitis when symptoms of other diseases appear.
• In addition to the above symptoms of stomatitis, you have inflammation of the mucous membrane of the nose and eyes. And also inflammation of the genitals, which means that most likely, along with stomatitis, you have Behcet's syndrome. This is a serious disease that requires immediate treatment. The syndrome damages blood vessels and is responsible for inflammation of the mucous membranes and the appearance of ulcers.
• If you had a fever, weakness throughout the body, and eye inflammation before the symptoms of stomatitis appeared, then the cause is Stevens-Johnson syndrome. In other words, it is a complex allergic reaction to medications and infectious diseases.

Before the symptoms of stomatitis appeared, you had a digestive disorder, diarrhea, abdominal pain or blood in the stool, the cause of stomatitis is Crohn's disease. This is a chronic inflammation of the intestines.

Remember that symptoms of stomatitis during pregnancy may indicate more serious problems than just a weakened immune system. In any case, if during pregnancy you experience symptoms such as:

• High temperature.
• Inflammation of the genitals and eyes.
• Blisters containing fluid appear on the skin.
• Frequent manifestations of stomatitis.

You need to see a doctor immediately, as complications during pregnancy and health problems for the future baby are simply inevitable.

Stomatitis on the tongue during pregnancy or catarrhal glossitis indicates inflammation of the oral mucosa, which is localized in the tongue area. The main causes of stomatitis on the tongue during pregnancy can be:

• Lack of proper oral hygiene.
• Dental disease (caries, periodontitis, periodontitis).
• Dysbacteriosis.
• Tartar.
• Diseases of the gastrointestinal tract.
• Duodenitis.
• Gastritis.
• Colitis.

Stomatitis on the tongue during pregnancy is characterized by yellow-white spots on the tongue. In a very severe form of stomatitis, there may be swelling of the tongue, thickening of the tongue, painful, cutting sensations when moving the tongue.

Symptoms of stomatitis on the tongue during pregnancy:

• The tongue has a red, painful appearance, and sometimes pigmentation of the tongue is noted.
• Loss of taste.
• The appearance of grayish spots on the tongue.

Remember that sometimes during stomatitis on the tongue, the infection can spread to the mucous membrane of the mouth. In this case, stomatitis is called geographic stomatitis.

When treating stomatitis on the tongue in pregnant women, it is necessary to eliminate the causes of the disease. The cause may be: tartar or dental diseases. The affected areas must be treated with antiseptic solutions: furacilin and chlorhexidine. For prevention and treatment, rinses with aminocaproic acid are used. At home, stomatitis on the tongue can be treated with calendula and chamomile solutions. These plants have antiseptic properties.

In addition, with stomatitis on the tongue during pregnancy, it is necessary to follow a diet. The diet involves eating warm food that does not irritate the mucous membrane. If you start treating stomatitis in time, the disease may go away in a week or a week and a half.

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Is stomatitis dangerous during pregnancy?

It is impossible to answer this question unequivocally. But it is worth knowing that this disease does not have the best effect on the health of the expectant mother. Therefore, at the first symptoms of stomatitis, it is necessary to visit a doctor.

Women who are carrying a baby may be interested in the question of whether stomatitis is dangerous during pregnancy. Stomatitis during pregnancy, no matter how insignificant or painless it may seem, can be dangerous for the mother and baby. However, with proper and timely treatment, you can get rid of the threats it poses. Note that you should not be afraid of the symptoms of stomatitis. Much more effective than fear of stomatitis during pregnancy will be a calm attitude to the disease and a properly prescribed course of treatment, which can only be selected by a doctor.

Pregnant women very often ask their doctors whether stomatitis is dangerous during pregnancy. Many infectious disease specialists claim that stomatitis will in any case have a negative impact on the mother's health, the course of pregnancy and childbirth. That is, stomatitis is a potential danger for the child.

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Consequences of stomatitis during pregnancy

The consequences of stomatitis during pregnancy can negatively affect the health of the expectant mother and baby. Remember that untimely visit to the doctor contributes to the rapid and active reproduction of microorganisms that cause an infectious disease of the oral mucosa. Because of this, inflammation and ulcers form in the mouth. Stomatitis should not be neglected during pregnancy, since in addition to painful sensations, stomatitis can harm the fetus.

The following consequences of stomatitis during pregnancy are distinguished:

• Discomfort and increased negative impact on a weakened immune system.
• Inflammation of the mucous membrane of the mouth, and sometimes the genitals.
• High temperature, which causes dehydration and negatively affects the course of pregnancy.
• Stomatitis may also appear in a baby immediately after birth if the mother was unable to cure the disease before giving birth.

To prevent negative consequences of stomatitis during pregnancy, it is necessary to undergo treatment. It is impossible to choose a suitable course of treatment on your own; this should be done by a doctor. Do not forget that taking any medications during pregnancy is dangerous, as this can cause a miscarriage or premature birth. Therefore, to treat stomatitis, doctors prescribe a course of antifungal drugs that are absolutely harmless to the baby.

Diagnosis of stomatitis during pregnancy

Stomatitis is primarily a fungal disease that manifests itself as a result of infection activation. In medical practice, to determine stomatitis, the doctor must examine the oral cavity of the suspected patient and also study the medical record of this person. There are no special tests for determining stomatitis in pregnant women (such as biopsy or bacterial culture).

The main indicator of the presence of the disease in the body is the nature of the location and appearance of wounds on the mucous membrane, as well as the fact that stomatitis is a recurring disease.

With stomatitis in pregnant women, a small number of ulcers appear on the mucous membrane, but the rest of the mucous membrane surface looks normal, undamaged. Symptoms indicating the presence of a disease in the body, such as fever or general deterioration in health, do not appear. General deterioration in health is observed when the disease progresses to a more advanced form.

Diagnosis of stomatitis during pregnancy involves an examination by a doctor who examines the medical history and conducts a full examination of the body areas affected by stomatitis. Only a visual examination allows diagnosing stomatitis. To date, there are no tests that dentists can perform to diagnose stomatitis or determine the disease by any signs before the symptoms of the disease appear. The doctor is obliged to study the medical history, as this allows diagnosing stomatitis and preventing recurrence of stomatitis.

When diagnosing stomatitis in pregnant women, special attention is paid to the symptoms of the disease. The very first and most reliable sign of approaching stomatitis is redness of the oral mucosa. Sometimes the onset of the disease may be accompanied not only by redness, but also by slight swelling and burning. If treatment is not started at this stage, painful inflamed ulcers will appear very soon. The ulcers are very painful and turn the process of eating into a real test. Diagnosis of stomatitis during pregnancy also takes into account the location of the redness, that is, the places for future ulcers. As a rule, this is the inside of the cheeks, tongue, palate and inside of the lips.

As a rule, in a healthy person, stomatitis goes away in one or two weeks, but during pregnancy, stomatitis can bother all nine months. In addition, stomatitis can cause complications and scars. Remember that stomatitis is a recurring disease, so it is important to treat not only the symptoms of stomatitis, but also the cause of its occurrence.

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Treatment of stomatitis during pregnancy

1. If the cause of stomatitis is a fungal infection, then treatment involves the use of antifungal drugs. Many of these drugs are harmless to the future baby, but not all. To protect yourself as much as possible, use a rinsing solution that can be prepared at home. For the solution, you will need: a teaspoon of soda and a glass of warm boiled water. You need to rinse your mouth every hour and a half throughout the day.
2. When the cause of stomatitis is bacterial diseases that occur due to injury to the mucous membrane, then it is necessary to resort to the use of antibacterial drugs. Damage occurs due to biting the tongue or the inner surface of the cheeks, a burn from a hot drink or tongue piercing. When treating stomatitis with antibacterial drugs, there is a risk of premature termination of pregnancy in the first trimester of pregnancy.
3. If stomatitis during pregnancy is caused by an allergy, then treatment involves identifying and eliminating the allergen. Antihistamines are used for treatment.

To cure stomatitis during pregnancy, you should pay close attention to oral hygiene. Since this is one of the most important factors that will help you quickly get rid of stomatitis. Choose a paste that disinfects, that is, has an antibacterial and anti-inflammatory effect and promotes the healing process of wounds. Particular attention should be paid to nutrition during pregnancy. Sometimes, due to a lack of certain substances or vitamins, stomatitis appears. You need a complete diet, which includes eating fish, fresh vegetables, and meat.

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Nutrition and diet of pregnant women with stomatitis

It is also extremely important for pregnant women to monitor their diet, since some types of stomatitis can appear due to a lack of certain vitamins and microelements. In addition to eating healthier and richer foods, it is also worth paying attention to the fact that spicy foods, citrus fruits, cereals, sweets and other products can provoke the appearance of stomatitis in pregnant women.

When stomatitis occurs during pregnancy, it is necessary to pay attention to your diet and stick to a diet. Firstly, it is necessary to eat small, non-coarse food that does not further injure the affected mucous membrane. Secondly, it is worth eating something that promotes the healing of ulcers on the mucous membrane, because if you do not pay attention to this, stomatitis can develop into a chronic form.

During stomatitis, it is best to avoid dishes with a strong taste - spicy, salty, sweet - as they irritate the mucous membrane. An exception may be honey, the solution of which should be used to rinse the mouth to speed up the healing process.

When choosing vegetables and fruits, pay attention to those that have a neutral taste. Use them in the form of gruel or juice. It is also possible to rinse your mouth with these juices.

If you want to eat meat, then grind it, make mince or pate. It is better to steam meat dishes, but it is better not to abuse protein foods during stomatitis during pregnancy. Moreover, meat is practically tasteless, and during stomatitis it is better not to use salt and seasonings. It is possible to eat broths, however, also without seasonings. An exception may be bay leaf, which has quite good medicinal properties.

Pay close attention to dairy and fermented milk products. Eating yoghurts, sour cream, kefir, curdled milk and other products is not only healthy, but also has the right consistency, so as not to injure the mucous membrane with ulcers. In addition, these products have their own characteristic taste and do not need to add seasonings and salt. You can choose the percentage of fat at your discretion, since this diet is not aimed at losing weight.

The most optimal solution would be to eat a lot of porridges – rice, semolina, oatmeal, etc. They not only help to saturate the body without damaging the affected mucous membrane, but also have a very beneficial effect on the body as a whole and on the work of the gastrointestinal tract in particular.

It is recommended to drink black and green tea, water and rosehip infusion. It is necessary to give up carbonated and alcoholic drinks, milkshakes, coffee and citrus juices for a while.

You should also avoid any berries. If you really want them, you can make a compote from them and drink it, after straining it very carefully.

And in conclusion of the description of the diet, it should be noted that food and drink should be at room temperature, since too hot or cold foods can only further irritate the mucous membrane and aggravate the disease.

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Prevention of stomatitis during pregnancy

In order to avoid stomatitis during pregnancy, you should pay attention to some rules, the observance of which will protect you.

Firstly, it is always worthwhile to carefully observe oral hygiene, and if possible, in addition to toothpaste, use dental floss and mouthwash.

Secondly, you should only eat thoroughly washed vegetables and fruits, since they accumulate a large number of microbes and bacteria during harvesting, transportation and sale.

Thirdly, it is advisable to drink not cold water, but water at room temperature, so as not to catch a cold in the oral mucosa.

Fourthly, in order for pregnancy not to leave an irreparable mark on your health, it is worth taking vitamin complexes for pregnant women and carefully approaching the choice of products in the diet, as well as the daily routine.

In general, stomatitis during pregnancy is not as scary as it seems. However, do not underestimate the scale to which it can develop and the consequences to which it can lead. Stomatitis during pregnancy is not a reprimand, but just an obstacle, having overcome which you become stronger and more selective.

Dear future mothers, be healthy and love your babies!

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