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Leukoplakia and hairy leukoplakia
Hi everybody and thanks for being there to answer questions of more ignorant people regarding these subjects like me. I'm from Argentina so sorry if I make any mistake in my question. The question is: would a dentist notice the difference between normal leukoplakia and hairy leukoplakia? she checked my tongue and she said that the white patch on the side of it it might be due to an aspirin that I placed on the floor of my mouth like a month ago, and in her opinion it will go away alone, but if it dosen't she told me she will send me to a stomatologist (i'm not sure if it's called that way) and the worse that can happen is that he/she will make a surgery and remove that plaque to prevent anything. If I what I have is hairy leukoplakia do you think she would have done or something different? Pelase let me know what you think and thanks in advance for your help
usually if its hairy leukoplakia it will look "hairy". the leukoplakia that leads to oral cancer is usually a white plaque or patch that does not scrape off and generally looks smooth like tissue or it can look like it has red eroded areas when its more advanced.
Don't place aspirin in your mouth anymore, it actually does nothing but burn the tissue. I would go with her recommendation, that if it doesn't go away, to get a biopsy to see what it is. Hairy leukoplakia would not look like an aspirin burn, but if you question whether you have HIV or not, its better to just get tested for it anyway.
Don't place aspirin in your mouth anymore, it actually does nothing but burn the tissue. I would go with her recommendation, that if it doesn't go away, to get a biopsy to see what it is. Hairy leukoplakia would not look like an aspirin burn, but if you question whether you have HIV or not, its better to just get tested for it anyway.
Hi and thanks for your answer!. What I really wanted to know is if a dentist would notice the difference between a normal leukoplakia and "hairy" leukoplakia and in the case that she would have notice that I have "hairy" leukoplakia if she would recomend an hiv test.
Thanks in advance for you answer
Thanks in advance for you answer
From the Mayo Clinic:
Not all cases of hairy leukoplakia need treatment, and your doctor or dentist may take a wait-and-watch approach. If you need treatment, several options are available:
* Systemic medications. These include antiviral drugs such as valacyclovir and famciclovir, which prevent the Epstein-Barr virus from replicating, but don't eliminate it from your body. Treatment with antivirals can clear leukoplakic patches, but symptoms often return once therapy stops.
* Topical medications. These include podophyllum resin solution and tretinoin (retinoic acid). When applied topically, these therapies can improve the appearance of leukoplakic patches, but once the medication is stopped, they may return.
Not all cases of hairy leukoplakia need treatment, and your doctor or dentist may take a wait-and-watch approach. If you need treatment, several options are available:
* Systemic medications. These include antiviral drugs such as valacyclovir and famciclovir, which prevent the Epstein-Barr virus from replicating, but don't eliminate it from your body. Treatment with antivirals can clear leukoplakic patches, but symptoms often return once therapy stops.
* Topical medications. These include podophyllum resin solution and tretinoin (retinoic acid). When applied topically, these therapies can improve the appearance of leukoplakic patches, but once the medication is stopped, they may return.
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