Canker Sores

[myheadhurts79]

Doctor please help.

Lately I have been getting a Canker Sore on the back bottom of my tongue every about month for the last 2-3 months. Right at the same place. It last about 3-4 days then goes away.

I have been under A LOT of stress. I lost my job a few months ago and having home issues. I also suffer from very bad OCD and Bipolar. So my stress is HIGH HIGH HIGH.

I also have high glucose.

I read online that HIV can cause canker sores so I got tested and it was negative.

Do you think this is just being caused by stress or high glucose? It seemed to start when the stress started.

Do you think it is something serious since it has come back a couple times? Do you think the negative HIV test rules out HIV being the cause? Or do you think stress probably is causing it and I need to relax?

Thank you for your time!!

[Jerome Tsang, DDS]

I would guess it may be something like geographic tongue?  May want to google that term and see if it applies.  Its an inflammatory response on the tongue in which the red/white patches of the tongue move around and sometimes results in a burning sensation.  

It could also be a side effect of one of your medications.

[myheadhurts79]

Thanks so much. One last quick question. Sorry.

Every once and awhile since all this stress has started my tongue feels funny. Kind of burning but not really burning. It's not painful, just noticeable. My wife looked at it with a light and said that my taste buds around the tip of my tongue are red and irritated looking. Could this be caused my the EXTREME stress or high glucose? I also take a lot of meds, is that a possible cause? Or would you think more stress induced? Or does that sound like something more serious?

Thanks again for your time and sorry for bugging you!

[Jerome Tsang, DDS]

It sounds like it may be stress induced.  Canker sores aren't well understood and there's no exact science on how to prevent them.  Try to avoid any salty or spicy foods as well and try to get the stress a bit more under control although I'm not in your shoes and I know saying it is easier than doing it.  But hopefully controlling the stress will help with the canker sores as well as any other issues.