Symptoms of BURNING MOUTH SYNDROME

The majority of these individuals experience the spontaneous onset of pain within the mouth or tongue. About one third have the symptoms develop in relationship to a dental procedure, recent illness or medication. Regardless of the nature of pain onset, once the oral burning starts, it often persists for many years. The burning sensation often occurs in more than one oral site, with the anterior two thirds of the tongue, the anterior hard palate and the mucosa of the lower lip most frequently involved. In many patients with the syndrome, pain is absent during the night but occurs at a mild to moderate level by middle to late morning. The burning may progressively increase throughout the day. Patients often report that the pain interferes with their ability to fall asleep. Perhaps because of sleep disturbances, constant pain, or both, patients with oral burning pain often have mood changes, including irritability, anxiety and depression. Earlier studies frequently minimized the pain of burning mouth syndrome, but more recent studies have reported that the pain ranges from moderate to severe and is similar in intensity to toothache pain. Most studies have found that oral burning is frequently accompanied by other symptoms, including dry mouth and altered taste. Alterations in taste occur in as many as two thirds of patients and often include complaints of persistent tastes (bitter, metallic, or both) or changes in the intensity of taste perception.