Treatment of stomatitis in children

Stomatitis in a child is a very common phenomenon caused by an inflammatory process of the oral mucosa, which also occurs in newborns. We can say that raising a child and not knowing what stomatitis looks like in children is almost impossible. Quite often, the symptoms of the disease initially resemble those of a respiratory infection with a characteristic fever, stuffy nose and poor appetite. But after a short time, parents notice the appearance of blisters and ulcers on the gums, cheeks and inner lips, which can be caused by various pathogens. The child behaves anxiously, capriciously, sleeps poorly... Even for an adult, it is very difficult to endure the painful sensations that arise from stomatitis, not to mention children, who cannot always clearly explain what is tormenting them. Parents, of course, are concerned about the question of what causes stomatitis in children and whether the occurrence of such a disease can be prevented. Let's try to understand this thoroughly.

Types of stomatitis

Everyone is more accustomed to saying “stomatitis”, but it would be more correct to say “stomatitis”, since this is a generalizing concept for a whole group of diseases. Depending on the causes of stomatitis, it can be divided into several types, each of which has a number of characteristics.

Viral or herpetic stomatitis in children

One of the most common types of stomatitis in children is caused by the herpes simplex virus. Typically, a child becomes infected through airborne droplets. In addition, the virus is transmitted through dishes, toys, and household items. Most often, herpetic stomatitis appears in a child between the ages of one and four years. The disease begins with a cold, accompanied by lethargy and increased body temperature. Sometimes there is a runny nose and cough. Around the second day, small round or oval erosions of a light yellow color with a bright red border appear on the lips, tongue and inside of the cheeks. Swelling appears, the gums begin to bleed, and the child refuses to eat.

Traumatic stomatitis in a child

The disease is caused by mechanical trauma to the oral cavity. For example, burns from hot food, a too hard nipple, the habit of chewing a pencil. In addition, traumatic stomatitis often occurs in children with malocclusion due to frequent biting of the cheeks and tongue.

Candidal stomatitis

Appears in children under one year of age. The cause is Candida fungi. The main symptom is the appearance of a white coating in the baby’s mouth. It should be noted that this should not be confused with regular flowering after feeding. A cause for concern is if plaque persists and the baby refuses to eat.

Drug or allergic stomatitis in children

Caused by certain allergies or reactions to medications. If this type of disease is suspected, it is necessary to identify and remove the allergen, otherwise there is a risk of unpleasant consequences, including anaphylactic shock.

Each type of stomatitis is characterized by a certain childhood age. Young children often have candidiasis or fungus (thrush). At the age of “I want to know everything” in a child of 3-4 years, stomatitis is usually infectious in nature, when the infection is transmitted through dirty hands or objects. From one to four years, an acute herpetic form of the disease is often observed.

Features of children's skin

At birth, babies have very thin skin. The skin of a newborn is almost half as thick as the skin of an adult. The outer layer thickens with age.

The skin of newborns is red or purple in color due to the close proximity to the upper layer of blood vessels and an insufficient layer of subcutaneous cellular tissue, as a result, the skin appears “transparent”. This phenomenon is especially pronounced if the baby is frozen - the appearance of a marbled vascular network on the body is observed.

Moisture evaporates faster from the skin of newborns. Children are more susceptible to bacteria, viruses, fungi and mechanical influences. Thickening of the skin begins at 2-3 years of age and ends by 7 years.

Causes of stomatitis in children

In childhood stomatitis, the mucous membrane of the oral cavity is affected: small, white or yellowish, fluid-filled pimples appear on its surface. In some cases, ulcers form.

Stomatitis is predominantly a childhood disease, although it can also occur in adults. The rash affects the inside of the cheeks, tongue and gums. The disease causes a lot of inconvenience: pimples hurt and itch, and their appearance is accompanied by a burning sensation in the mouth.

Among the main reasons for the development of stomatitis are:

poor oral hygiene;
mucosal injuries;
diseases of the gastrointestinal tract;
burns of the oral cavity;
pathogenic bacteria that enter the oral cavity with dirty hands, toys, etc.

Symptoms of stomatitis

Signs of stomatitis in a child have a number of features characteristic of a particular type of disease.

Herpetic stomatitis in children is considered very common and usually manifests itself as follows:

in the initial stage, the disease is confused with a cold due to increased body temperature, often runny nose and cough;
the inflammatory process begins abruptly, manifested by headaches and pain in the mouth and muscles due to intoxication of the body;
submandibular lymph nodes are enlarged and painful;
feature - the formation of small bubbles filled with liquid.

Upon visual examination, redness of the gum tissue around the teeth, swelling of the mucous membrane and numerous vesicular rashes covered with a yellowish or whitish coating are noted. Candidal stomatitis in children can be clinically acute or mild. In this case, signs of stomatitis in a child appear as follows:

very rarely an increase in temperature is recorded;
in the oral cavity there are affected areas covered with a coating of cottage cheese;
children behave restlessly, are capricious, refuse to eat;
Locally similar stomatitis in children (or thrush, as it is often called) occurs on the tongue, cheeks, gums and inner lips).

Aphthous stomatitis in children is the most common form of the disease, but also difficult to treat due to the difficulty of identifying the specific pathogen. Similar stomatitis in children, the symptoms of which are more common in schoolchildren than in the younger age group, is characterized by the following symptoms:

rash of single ulcers (feed) on the mucous membrane (on the cheeks, in the area of the tongue and the inside of the lips);
Initially, such stomatitis in children in the mouth is manifested by characteristic redness, itching, burning, and an increase in temperature is also noted.

In this case, the ulcers do not look like blisters, but are whitish ulcers with a bright red outline around them. Then the ulcers are usually covered with a cloudy film, which can break through and cause a secondary infection, after which the baby’s condition will only worsen. Parents should know that stomatitis in a child is not a single type of infection with specific symptoms.

Each form of this inflammatory process has its own specific symptoms and causes. That is why, despite a number of individual similar points (temperature during stomatitis in a child, signs of inflammation of the mucous membrane, enlarged lymph nodes), the problem of treating stomatitis in a child is solved differently, taking into account the form of the disease.

When to see a doctor

Symptoms of the virus may be typical or atypical. Regular herpes on the lips of a child will go away on its own in a few weeks or a little later. However, even with an uncomplicated disease, it is better to consult a specialist. This will help relieve the baby’s discomfort; antiviral drugs will be prescribed for external and internal use. These medications will reduce the intensity and duration of the first stages of the disease. Manifestations of common herpes include blisters on the lips (gums). There may also be a fever, severe sore throat and enlarged tonsils.

You should immediately show your child to a specialist if atypical manifestations of herpes appear. They are as follows:

The baby developed a rash or sores and a strong fever. Such signs indicate the manifestation of a chronic infectious herpes simplex virus;
rashes around the eyes. The disease often provokes inflammation of the cornea;
headache, convulsions, increased body temperature, loss of orientation in space. In this case, there may be a manifestation of cerebral infections provoked by the herpes virus.

When answering the question of what to do if a child has herpes on the lip, we advise you to contact a dermatovenerologist or pediatrician. You can make an appointment with these specialists without leaving your home. This can be done on our website. JSC "Medicine" (clinic of academician Roitberg) is located in the central district of the capital.

Diagnosis of the disease

The pathology of stomatitis is diagnosed by infectious disease specialists, pediatricians, and pediatric dentists. The diagnosis is made on the basis of clinical and epidemiological data.

Based on materials from smears, scrapings, and blood, the following studies are carried out:

virological;
bacteriological;
immunological;
cytological.

Diagnostics such as polymerase chain reaction and enzyme immunoassay are performed. In some cases, the child has a blood test for the presence of sugar, and a consultation with an endocrinologist, allergist and other specialists is carried out.

Correctly conducted diagnostic examinations will help establish the correct diagnosis and prescribe effective treatment so that the situation does not worsen.

After a medical diagnosis of stomatitis in children under one year of age, a specialist prescribes highly effective drugs to combat the existing type of disease. Experts recommend that parents, at the first suspicion of stomatitis in a child, increase the amount the child drinks to irrigate the oral mucosa and remove toxins from the body. Clean drinking water without gas, fruit drinks or compotes that are not too sweet or sour; herbal teas are perfect for this. During this period, it is worth refusing to drink the child from concentrated juices and drinks with gas in order to avoid irritation of the mucous membrane.

After this, the specialist begins medical manipulations to cure stomatitis in the child.

Anesthesia

The first step is to numb the mucous membranes so that the child can eat and drink properly and generally reduce the child's stress level. Choline preparations with salicylate or lidocaine are commonly used as pain relievers in children. For this purpose, medications to facilitate teething, for example Kamistad or Dentinox gel, are suitable. Gel products are preferable for children because they are almost instantly absorbed into the mucosal tissue. Prepare with lidocaine in the form of a spray should not be used in children under one year of age - this may lead to bronchospasm.

Direct treatment of stomatitis

After anesthesia, you can begin treating your baby’s stomatitis. Firstly, all rashes and wounds must be treated with a special preparation, depending on the type of disease. Antiviral drugs are used for herpetic stomatitis, antibiotics and antiseptic drugs for bacterial stomatitis, antifungal drugs for candidal stomatitis. Not only the affected area, but also adjacent areas must be treated - this will stop the spread of the pathogenic process.

An important condition for eliminating infection is thorough and timely oral hygiene. The surface of the child's tongue and teeth should be brushed twice a day; experts recommend rinsing the mouth after every meal or drink. For young children, hygiene procedures are carried out using a piece of gauze or a silicone fingertip.

Treatment of allergic stomatitis

If a specialist has identified the presence of allergic stomatitis or severe swelling of the oral cavity is observed, then the drugs Fenistil, Suprastin, Diphenhydramine are used.

Treatment of viral stomatitis

For herpetic stomatitis, antiviral agents should be used in the form of ointments containing acyclovir - Gerpevir, Virolex, Acik, Viferon, oxolinic ointment.

For relapses of viral stomatitis, experts recommend a general strengthening of the immune system with the help of Immunal, Interferon, Viferon in suppositories. The duration of treatment and dosage of the drug is determined by the doctor. Often, medical experts recommend using the drug Cholisal in gel form. Perfectly relieves swelling, inflammation, pain, fever, eliminates pathogenic microflora. The drug does not contain sugar, has no taste and has a light anise aroma. To treat stomatitis in a child under one year old, it is necessary to rub a strip of gelatin preparation no more than 0.5 centimeters long into the palate, gums and inner surface of the cheeks, teeth, 2-3 times a day after brushing the teeth.

Treatment of candidal stomatitis

For candidal stomatitis, the doctor uses antifungal drugs in the form of an ointment, for example, Clotrimazole, Candida, Candizol, and often prescribes soda rinses.

This helps create an alkaline environment in the oral cavity, harmful to pathogenic fungal microflora. Procedures with soda are especially effective in the treatment of candidal stomatitis in children under the age of one year, because at this age most drugs are contraindicated. To treat the oral cavity, you need to dilute a teaspoon of soda in a glass of warm boiled water, then wrap a piece of gauze around a clean finger and wipe the palate, inner surface of the cheeks, gums and sublingual space of the child, periodically dipping your finger into the solution. The procedure should be done after every child eats or drinks. Older children can rinse their mouths with baking soda themselves.

Treatment of aphthous stomatitis

With aphthous stomatitis, the first priority is to unload the affected area and speed up the healing of the poop. An aqueous solution of blue (methylene blue) has long been used for this purpose. It is not recommended to use a blue alcohol solution for this, since the ethyl alcohol in its composition will cause poisoning or burn the baby’s mucous membrane.

Wounds are treated with a blue cotton swab 3-6 times a day.

Treatment of traumatic stomatitis

According to experts, traumatic stomatitis most often occurs in children 1-2 years old. This type of disease is accompanied by bacterial microflora, so the use of medicinal and antiseptic agents will be required. For children under 2 years of age, use Cholisal, Solcoseryl, Actovegin gel, and also wipe the oral cavity with a solution of chlorhexidine or soda.

Treatment of bacterial stomatitis

For the treatment of bacterial stomatitis, drugs such as Tantum Verde, Orasept and Hexoral in the form of a spray, Doctor Theiss and Septolete in the form of lozenges and many others are effective. Experts do not recommend using lozenges to treat children under 6 years of age due to the risk of asphyxia, and sprays are suitable for treating bacterial stomatitis in children over one year of age. Antiseptic rinses and gel preparations with metronidazole are also effective.

Among solutions with an antiseptic effect, the drug Miramistin is especially recommended, as it promotes the regeneration of the affected mucous membrane and eliminates most pathogens. The aerosol can is convenient for treating children under one year of age. To do this, you need to make 3 injections and rinse your mouth with them for several minutes 3-4 times a day. Babies under the age of one year are treated with gauze soaked in the drug.

Causes and risk factors of acne

Acne develops around the hair follicles and is caused by excessive sebum production. Increased secretion of sebum in combination with the presence of dead skin cells on the epidermis leads to clogging of the follicles of the hair shaft, which is accompanied by the appearance of comedones.

Comedones are the same tiny sores with a white tip that turn black when exposed to oxygen. Exacerbation of acne is caused by the involvement of an infectious process. A moist and oily environment is a favorable substrate for the proliferation of acne bacilli (Propionibacterium acnes).

When the bacteria is present, an inflammatory reaction develops, with pimples forming a red plaque on the top of the skin. The final sign of acne is nodular acne, characterized by large inflammatory lesions that can hurt and even leave scars after recovery.

There are several factors that increase the likelihood that a child will develop acne:

using skin and hair care products that contain chemicals that irritate the skin;
using alkaline soap and very hot water;
squeezing pimples and scratching affected areas of the skin;
frequent stressful situations or constant nervous tension;
excessive sweating and dandruff.

Learning what causes acne in children can help find ways to prevent and treat the disease. This allows the child to overcome the stress and depression that he experiences due to acne on his skin.

Endocrinopathies can be the cause of childhood acne. That is why, if you have acne, you should definitely consult a doctor to rule out such severe pathologies as congenital adrenal hyperplasia, malignant testicular tumors and polycystic ovary syndrome.

Caring for a child with stomatitis

Parental involvement in treatment and proper care of children is not only important, but also necessary. With stomatitis, it is necessary to strictly follow the treatment plan, which is often very labor-intensive, so the result depends on parental care and control. The oral cavity is a kind of epicenter of pain, so it is not surprising that the child is very temperamental. Therefore, it is important for parents to be patient and persistent.

Most mothers and fathers are concerned about what to feed their child with stomatitis. Firstly, you need to eat only soft, warm and pasty foods, such as purees. The main thing is that the food is high in calories and not heavy, because the child’s immunity is already weakened. After eating, be sure to rinse your mouth so as not to provoke the development of stomatitis and not to add an additional infection. Spicy, sour, sweet and citrus foods should be excluded from the child's diet.

For stomatitis in children, it is necessary to relieve pain. This is done with the help of various medications to avoid food refusal and poor sleep. Also, for stomatitis in children, adequate oral treatment is very important. Your doctor should recommend how to handle your child and rinse his mouth.

Prevention

To prevent your child from being bothered by white pimples on the lips, it is recommended to carefully maintain oral hygiene and the area around the mouth. Do not consume food or drinks at very high temperatures, which can lead to thermal burns and watery pimples. If the baby is under one year old or a little older, then you should make sure that he does not put dirty objects in his mouth, which can become a source of infection. It is worth treating the skin of a young child with high-quality care products to avoid allergic reactions and other negative manifestations. It is important to eat a balanced diet so that the child’s body receives a sufficient amount of vitamins and does not weaken immunity.

Prevention of stomatitis in children

Irritative stomatitis can be prevented with good oral hygiene, regular dental check-ups and proper nutrition. Because many adults and children carry the herpes virus and can transmit it even without symptoms, there is no practical way to prevent herpetic stomatitis. However, parents may discourage their child from kissing, eating, or playing in close contact with people who have an active herpes infection.

Ulcers can be minimized by teaching children to avoid injury, even minor trauma to the mouth. If our doctor determines that a child has a nutritional deficiency, parents can make sure the child is taking appropriate supplements and eating recommended foods. It won’t hurt to visit the dentist once every six months if we have previously discovered stomatitis in the child. Regular visits to our clinic will help prevent serious complications and detect the disease in time.

How to make an appointment with a pediatrician, dermatovenerologist, immunologist-infectious disease specialist

You can make an appointment with specialists from JSC “Medicine” (clinic of Academician Roitberg) on the website or by calling +7(495)995-00-33. The clinic is located in the Central Administrative District of the capital. If there are symptoms of herpes on the lips of a child, contact experienced specialists. For diagnostics, our clinic uses modern innovative equipment of the latest generation.

As soon as the first signs of the disease appear, do not delay visiting a doctor. Get advice from experienced doctors at JSC “Medicine” (clinic of academician Roitberg). You will be prescribed an individual course of treatment and your child will be monitored throughout it until complete recovery.