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Michelle Janbakhsh DDS
Dry mouth, or xerostomia, is a condition usually associated with reduced salivary gland flow. It affects at least one in 10 adults. In adults older than 65 the prevalence is about 25%, while in institutionalized elders it can be as high as 50%.
Many oral and systemic conditions can cause a change in the flow and composition of saliva. Prescription medications are implicated in 64% of dry mouth cases. The major drug groups are antihypertensives, antidepressants, analgesics, statins, antihistamines and anticancer meds but other factors may be involved.
Risk Assessment for Dry Mouth
If you answer yes to any of the following questions you could be at risk of abnormal salivary gland function.
1- Does the amount of saliva in your mouth seem too little?
2- Do you have any difficulty swallowing?
3- Does your mouth feel dry when eating a meal?
4- Do you sip liquids to aid in swallowing dry food?
Symptoms of Dry Mouth
Dry cracked lips and corners of the mouth, thick or ropey saliva, dry thin pale oral mucosa, loss of moist or burning feeling in the mouth, impaired taste, bad smell of the mouth, impaired taste, difficulty wearing dentures, dental hypersensitivity.
Non-oral symptoms: Sleep disturbance, dry nose and changes in sense of smell, dry burning eyes, blurred vision, heart burn, constipation, vaginal itching or dryness or fungal infection.
Complications of dry mouth include cavities on roots and teeth, reddened, fissured or lobulated tongue, opportunistic infections such as viral infection or overgrowth of candida. Also gingivitis, canker sore, cracked and bleeding tissue.
