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Dr. Andrew Rynne
MD
Dr. Andrew Rynne

Family Physician

Exp 50 years

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Suggest Treatment For Cracked Lips, Cuts In The Gums And Inner Cheeks

I have dry, cracked lips on and off for the past couple months. I use lip balm and lipstick when I don t have it and when I do I use white petroleum jelly on them. I also have a bad taste in my mouth. I sometimes get what feels like cuts on my gums and inner cheeks. What could this be?
Fri, 29 Jul 2016
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Dentist,  's  Response
Hello,

I can understand your concern. Are you a mouth breather? From your complaint, it seems like you have lip that do not close when you are resting and you tend to breathe through mouth instead of nose which is making the lip, gums and mucosa of the cheek very dry and develops cuts in it.

If this is the case, then you should try to close your lips at least when you are conscious about it. If you are unable to do that, you should contact a dentist and ask him/her to do the mouth breathing test.

If you are indeed a mouth breather, investigations will be needed to find the cause of it. ENT specialist may have to be consulted and treatment can be started.

If the cut in gums and cheeks are painful or burning while eating, you can apply local Benzocaine gel (Mucopain) over the areas 3-4 times a day. Applying it before meals will make eating easier.

I hope this information helps you. Thank you for choosing HealthcareMagic. Take care.

Best,
Dr. Viraj Shah
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Suggest Treatment For Cracked Lips, Cuts In The Gums And Inner Cheeks

Hello, I can understand your concern. Are you a mouth breather? From your complaint, it seems like you have lip that do not close when you are resting and you tend to breathe through mouth instead of nose which is making the lip, gums and mucosa of the cheek very dry and develops cuts in it. If this is the case, then you should try to close your lips at least when you are conscious about it. If you are unable to do that, you should contact a dentist and ask him/her to do the mouth breathing test. If you are indeed a mouth breather, investigations will be needed to find the cause of it. ENT specialist may have to be consulted and treatment can be started. If the cut in gums and cheeks are painful or burning while eating, you can apply local Benzocaine gel (Mucopain) over the areas 3-4 times a day. Applying it before meals will make eating easier. I hope this information helps you. Thank you for choosing HealthcareMagic. Take care. Best, Dr. Viraj Shah