Aa
Aa
A
A
A
Close
1168718 tn?1464983535

Canker Sores

Hi Guys, I was wondering if you all have ever had canker sores.and is it related to the MS ?   I have had them for a few days now, and dthey are on the roof of my mouth, in my cheeks, by the lips,  down by my front teeth, I have been using the salt water, and tums, to control acidity, but it does not seem to be working,

My lip is starting to tingle now too, so am wondering if I am getting a cold sore too.  The last time that I had a bad cold sore, I had a major attack, and am wondering if this might be a warning sign ?   Need your smart feed back, please ?  Or any remedies that you all might have.

Thanks,
Candy \
15 Responses
Sort by: Helpful Oldest Newest
16911673 tn?1452322293
laurate not dodecyl or so the lupus site say's ... mouthwashes are the worst for sodium laurate
Helpful - 0
Avatar universal
What is the dosage of valtrex did you take? And the duration?
Helpful - 0
Avatar universal
HI Sidesteps

the same thing happened to me!  Accept I was 20!  someone with a cold sore drank out of my water bottle at a party, and then I got the virus but instead of just getting a cold sore I had a severe reactions. had blisters  all over and spiked a high fever, could not eat or drink for days etc.   I had at least 20 cold sores in my mouth (roof of my mouth, gums, tongue throat), had them in my private area, in my nose.  It was truly awful.

Doctor had never seen anything like it, accept for infants.  They tested me for HIV etc. because they thought I was immune compromised! (negatie).

Well now I am immune compromised, and these pesky things are coming back.  I don't really get cold sores (lips or on my private area) but I get sores on the roof of my mouth or gum and occsionally my cheek.  They start like a blister so I thought i ate something hot but they turn into ulcers (Canker sores do not do this, so it's one big clue if what you have is a canker or cold sore).  Cankers start as a hole not a blister.

so yes!  Unfortunatley you can get cold sores in your mouth, not just on your lip.  Only way to know for sure is to get the doctor to swab the sore for a culture for HSV. I was taking famvir and it works better then valtrex for me.  The only lip thing I get is my lip will split so I worry I will get a sore, but it never gets past the tingle / pain stage and goes away a day later.

Helpful - 0
1168718 tn?1464983535
Hi guys, well my Dr. agreed that is was probably caused from the MS due to the last of auto immmune disease.  Anyways, he gave me some medicine tohelp, and we are going to try it tonight, and hoping it works.  

Thanks for your input .......

Cheers,
Candy
Helpful - 0
429700 tn?1308007823
I get them too.  I would think that they would be common in people with MS because typically we are low in vitamin B-12 which is related to mouth ulcers.  Also, canker sores can be caused by an immune response.  

My sister gets a lot of these, also.  She says that when she started using Sensodine toothpaste, that they have disappeared.  Since she just told me about this, I haven't tried it.  I have read that toothpastes containing sodium dodecyl sulfate can trigger them, so getting a toothpaste without this can help to prevent them.  
Helpful - 0
987762 tn?1671273328
COMMUNITY LEADER
ahm my tooth paste is sensodine!

I've been using it for years because i suddenly started getting mouth ulcers when i used the other ones, switched to sensodine and stopped getting them. They started again earlier this year, still using sensodine and now have them each time i brush my teeth with paste.

I've even tried dry brushing in the morning and using paste at night but cankers will be forming by the morning so i have to stop. Yuk i'm sick of gargling salt water but its the only thing that seems to calm them down, the entire thing is like living in a fish bowl, a circular problem.

Dr advised I try making a paste of bi carbonate or use the toothpaste for babies, the babies ones I tried didn't work, might try the bi carb and add mint flavouring cause i'm getting desperate enough lol I have been told to gargle with milk before and after but it didn't do anything for me.

Interesting.........JJ

Helpful - 0
1475492 tn?1332884167
Can I ask? Are you running a temperature or feeling  a bit ill at all?

The reason I ask is that it could be an indication that you for some reason are having an cold sore outbreak which is viral and contagious. (Kinda like shingles with chicken pox, you immune system being compromised might cause this.)

My daughter had a reaction like this with her intial outbreak of herpes/cold sores... (she didn't have Coxsackie. ) Unfortunately, she has a immune weakness to the herpes strains (chicken pox, cold sores, etc.) so she had a very severe reaction on her initial outbreak. The sores were all over the inside of her mouth, down her throat, bottoms of her feet, hands and in her private area.  It was horrible!  One of the worse times I've had with my children being sick. She missed 3 weeks of preschool. We had to put her on a pain management schedule to get her to eat or sleep. She smelled was burning muscle instead of fat. It was so sad.

She started getting really bad cold sores after that and I kept taking her in because they would infect the entire outside of her mouth. I kept saying "She has only started having these since that weird virus." Her pediatrician finally told me that "weird virus" was a severe reaction to her first cold sore outbreak. She also had shingles with her varicella shots.

I think as an adult it's similar to a herpes outbreak except in the mouth. They may be able to put you on valtrex or something like that. She was too young.

It could also be:
http://www.medic8.com/healthguide/articles/coxsackie.html

My nephew had this and it sounded very similar to my daughters except it wasn't herpes.

Helpful - 0
1168718 tn?1464983535
thanks guys, it is all good information.  My cankers just started for no reason about 1 month ago.  They are super painful, and make it hard to eat.  Nothing seems to trigger them, and we have tried almost everything to figure it out...... except the toothpaste thing.  Lol ..... I do use a sensodyne toothpaste / pro-namel and have used it for along time, but maybe ??????

Cold sores usually appear on the outside of the lips, and are a blister first, then spread.  And YES Bob, it is a herpes complex..... but, cankers typically appear inside the mouth, roof of, and the inside of the cheeks, and  on some sites, it does say it is related to an auto immune disease....
.......... still checking that out.

Cheers, \
Candy
Helpful - 0
755322 tn?1330269114
Good information, Bob. Thanks for the dissertation on Cold sores. I never knew all that stuff or its potential trigger for MS. Wow..

As for canker sores you get in your mouth, if they aren't viral, they might be your body trying to rid itself of excess acidity. I found that brushing teeth with baking soda and rinsing with baking soda and water makes a big difference for me. I get these painful things when I eat too many tomatoes or oranges or when I used to drink Margaritas.

Also drinking a 1/2 tsp of baking soda in water first thing in the morning helps an acidic condition.

Just a thought...
Helpful - 0
1453990 tn?1329231426
Canker Sores are sometimes confused with Cold Sores, but the two are not related.  Cold Sores are caused by the Herpes Simplex 1 and 2 (HSV-1 and HSV-2) viruses (Herpesviridae).  While nothing direct, there is a relationship between higher HSV-6 titers in the CSF of MS patients than non-MS controls, and there appears to be a higher titer of HSV-6 in people who report less of activity of HSV-1.

I know none of this has to do with "canker sores." but if the canker sore is actually HSV-1 and a cold sore, there is some relationship.  Herpesviridae is one of the virus families that has received quite a bit of attention as a possible viral trigger for starting the MS autoimmune response.

Bob

Helpful - 0
987762 tn?1671273328
COMMUNITY LEADER
Hi I get mouth ulcers (canker's) but haven't ever had a cold sore, the main culpret for my ulcers is tooth paste lol what an oxymoron, how dumb to not be able to brush your teeth because of what you use to clean them lol A little bird told me she gets them from eating chocolate, lol i'd go mental if i had to give up chocolate!

I gargle salt water straight after brushing, ive tried every toothpaste on the market in the last 6 months, aaaaaaaah they all do it, so either my immune system has gone freaky sensitive or the entire industry changed their formular lol the odds are its ME!

There is a lot of information on the web, about.com is an easy read and has a list of all the known or suspected causes, one of the problems is that they dont really have a clear cut answer for cankers.

Question: What Causes Canker Sores?
Canker sores are very painful sores found inside the mouth that often appear out of nowhere, leaving suffers asking: What causes canker sores?

Answer: We know what canker sores are, but the exact cause is still unknown. Women statistically suffer from canker sores more often than men. Canker sores are typically seen in people between the ages of 10 and 40, although they have been known to show up at any age.

There is reason to believe that certain types of bacteria and/or viruses are responsible for the painful mouth sores. Canker sores are not contagious and are not related to the herpes simplex virus, also known as cold sores.

See http://dentistry.about.com/od/basicdentalcare/f/cankercause.htm  if you want to read the full article, its worth reading even if its just to read the list of possible causes.

Cant help with the cold sore aspect sorry, though i do recall that because they are caused by a virus and viral infections being a known trigger for MS relapses, so you going into a relapse because of this, then it would be a possibility. ;-(

Cheers.....JJ  

  
Helpful - 0
1168718 tn?1464983535
Hi, thanks Kristi, yes I have tried the Valtrex and it does work, this one on my lip is just forming, and it doesn't seem to help with it.... the ones inside my mouth, are horrible and it makes it hard to eat.  I do hope that the Dr. can help me out on Tuesday.....

thanks for your reply,
take care,
Candy
Helpful - 0
Avatar universal
I was really sick for several weeks recently. It started with burning in my throat but turned into canker sores all down the back of my throat. Not on my tonsils. I went to the Urgent Care and they said it was viral. Those canker sores lasted a week from start to finish.

I gargled with warm salt water..nothing helped. Just time. It was the weirdest thing. Have you tried to buy the cold sore med from the drugstore? My daughter gets them bad on her mouth and Valtrex helps.

I really hope you start to feel better soon.

Kristi
Helpful - 0
1168718 tn?1464983535
Hi Carol, I a going to the Dr. on Tues and will discuss it with him and hoping he will know something.  

Cheers,
Candy
Helpful - 0
199882 tn?1310184542
I don't get canker sores but both corners of my mouth stay split open... My doctor says it's caused from drooling while I sleep... I personally don't think that's it but who knows right?   I've tried everything to clear it up but nothing seems to work... Candy, have you asked your doctor about it?  Hopefully someone here will be able to help you out...

I'll be praying,
Carol
Helpful - 0
Have an Answer?

You are reading content posted in the Multiple Sclerosis Community

Top Neurology Answerers
987762 tn?1671273328
Australia
5265383 tn?1669040108
ON
1756321 tn?1547095325
Queensland, Australia
1780921 tn?1499301793
Queen Creek, AZ
Learn About Top Answerers
Didn't find the answer you were looking for?
Ask a question
Popular Resources
Find out how beta-blocker eye drops show promising results for acute migraine relief.
In this special Missouri Medicine report, doctors examine advances in diagnosis and treatment of this devastating and costly neurodegenerative disease.
Here are 12 simple – and fun! – ways to boost your brainpower.
Discover some of the causes of dizziness and how to treat it.
Discover the common causes of headaches and how to treat headache pain.
Two of the largest studies on Alzheimer’s have yielded new clues about the disease