Ulceration Flashcards
3 Types of Oral Lesions?
- Ulcerations
- Changes in colour (white patches, red patches, brown/blue lesion)
- Swelling
What is a ‘breach in the surface of the epthelium or mucous membrane’?
Ulcer
Can ulcers develop down into connective tissue layers or are they usually just superficial?
They can do both
If a patient presents with a single ulcer, what 2 key questions would you ask?
- Is the ulcer recurrent?
2. Is the ulcer persistent, if yes, how long has it been there?
If a patient presents with multiple ulcers, what 2 key questions would you ask?
- is this the first episode of having multiple ulcers?
2. is it recurrent?
Briefly list the 6 causes for Oral Ulceration.
- Trauma
- RAS
- Neoplasia (Squamous Cell Carcinoma)
- Oral Infections
- Systemic Disease
- Drugs
What are some common causes of a persistent solitary ulcer?
- trauma
- malignancy
- adverse drug reactions
- STI
What do the following signs and symptoms indicate?
- sore
- painful to touch
- irregular border
- erythematous border
- yellow/grey slough at base
- keratinised border if lesion is in healing phase
Traumatic Ulcer
How long does a traumatic ulcer normally take to resolve after removing source of trauma?
10 days
What would things other than oral presentation would indicate that a persistent solitary ulcer is a malignancy?
if the patient is
- unwell
- has unexplained weight loss
- risk factors of smoking
What do the following signs and symptoms indicate?
- painless lesion
- rolled edges
- indentulated
- firm on palpation
- bleeding on palpation
- also associated with lymphodenopathy
Malignancy
Which sites of the oral cavity are high risk of developing malignancy?
Lateral border of tongue and FOM.
What STI is associated with a persistent solitary ulcer.
Syphilitic chancre on upper lip
What drug can cause a persistent solitary ulcer in centre of tongue?
nicorandil
What are the two causes of recurrent solitary ulcers?
- recurrent trauma
- Oral Lichen Planus
