By: Tanya Lewis
Published: April 10, 2015 03:44pm ET
A healthy 65-year-old woman developed a relentless burning feeling in her mouth that stumped doctors and dentists for months before its strange cause was found, according to a recent report of her case.
The burning got worse whenever the woman brushed her teeth but subsided within 10 minutes. The pain went away after one month after she first experienced it, but then returned a year later and remained constant. She saw a dentist, an oral surgeon and her family doctor, but none of them could find any lesions in the mouth or other possible causes of the burning.
They prescribed mouthwashes, milk-of-magnesia rinses and anti-anxiety drugs, and recommended avoiding toothpaste with whitening agents. But nothing relieved the burning sensation.
The woman had a case of a condition called "burning mouth syndrome," which is a chronic, burning sensation inside the mouth, usually in the lips, tongue or palate, according to the study, published April 1 in the journal BMJ Case Reports. [16 Oddest Medical Case Reports]
"It's common in postmenopausal women, and affects up to 7 percent of the general population," said study co-author Dr. Maria Nagel, a neurovirologist and professor at the University of Colorado School of Medicine in Aurora. Nagel compared the feeling to a "sunburn inside the mouth," adding that it feels similar to the pain caused by a tooth infection or a root canal.
The condition can be a side effect of certain drugs, but other cases have no apparent medical or dental cause, Nagel said.
After the woman had experienced this pain for six months, doctors tested her saliva for the virus that causes oral herpes, the herpes simplex virus type 1 (HSV-1). The virus commonly causes cold sores around the mouth and lips, but the woman didn't have any cold sores.
The tests showed that the woman's saliva was swarming with the infectious particles.
"If she'd had cold sores, it would have been obvious," Nagel told Live Science. "Most people don't think of HSV-1 as the potential cause of burning mouth syndrome, so they don't test for it. But it's easily treatable with antiviral medication," she said.
The woman began taking an antiviral drug, and her pain disappeared within five days. Follow-up tests of her saliva — done four weeks later, and again six months later — found no hint of the virus. A year and a half after finishing her treatment, the patient remains pain-free, researchers said.
Estimates vary, but up to 70 percent of people worldwide may be infected with HSV-1, Nagel said. This herpes simplex virus is spread through kissing, intimate contact, or sharing objects such as toothbrushes or towels, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. In most infected people, the virus never becomes activated, Nagel said. When the virus is activated — typically due to stress or a suppressed immune system — it usually causes cold sores that eventually go away on their own.
But sometimes, the virus can reactivate without causing cold sores, as this woman's case demonstrates. Instead, it infects the facial nerves, most commonly the trigeminal ganglion, which provides sensation in the face and mouth, Nagel said.
Nagel and her colleagues still don't know why the herpes virus reactivated in the woman, but they speculated that it might have been due to hormonal fluctuations, because she was postmenopausal.
HSV-1 may be the culprit for a number of unexplained medical symptoms besides burning mouth syndrome. For example, Nagel and her colleagues have found preliminary evidence that the virus can cause migraine headaches, and patients get relief from taking antiviral medication.
In rare cases, the virus can cause encephalitis, a type of brain inflammation that can cause significant brain damage or death if not treated promptly, according to the Mayo Clinic.
Follow Tanya Lewis on Twitter. Follow us @livescience, Facebook & Google+. Original article on Live Science.
Copyright 2015 LiveScience, a Purch company. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.]]>
Our 2024 Coverage Needs You
It's Another Trump-Biden Showdown — And We Need Your Help
The Future Of Democracy Is At Stake
Our 2024 Coverage Needs You
Your Loyalty Means The World To Us
As Americans head to the polls in 2024, the very future of our country is at stake. At HuffPost, we believe that a free press is critical to creating well-informed voters. That's why our journalism is free for everyone, even though other newsrooms retreat behind expensive paywalls.
Our journalists will continue to cover the twists and turns during this historic presidential election. With your help, we'll bring you hard-hitting investigations, well-researched analysis and timely takes you can't find elsewhere. Reporting in this current political climate is a responsibility we do not take lightly, and we thank you for your support.
Contribute as little as $2 to keep our news free for all.
Can't afford to donate? Support HuffPost by creating a free account and log in while you read.
The 2024 election is heating up, and women's rights, health care, voting rights, and the very future of democracy are all at stake. Donald Trump will face Joe Biden in the most consequential vote of our time. And HuffPost will be there, covering every twist and turn. America's future hangs in the balance. Would you consider contributing to support our journalism and keep it free for all during this critical season?
HuffPost believes news should be accessible to everyone, regardless of their ability to pay for it. We rely on readers like you to help fund our work. Any contribution you can make — even as little as $2 — goes directly toward supporting the impactful journalism that we will continue to produce this year. Thank you for being part of our story.
Can't afford to donate? Support HuffPost by creating a free account and log in while you read.
It's official: Donald Trump will face Joe Biden this fall in the presidential election. As we face the most consequential presidential election of our time, HuffPost is committed to bringing you up-to-date, accurate news about the 2024 race. While other outlets have retreated behind paywalls, you can trust our news will stay free.
But we can't do it without your help. Reader funding is one of the key ways we support our newsroom. Would you consider making a donation to help fund our news during this critical time? Your contributions are vital to supporting a free press.
Contribute as little as $2 to keep our journalism free and accessible to all.
Can't afford to donate? Support HuffPost by creating a free account and log in while you read.
As Americans head to the polls in 2024, the very future of our country is at stake. At HuffPost, we believe that a free press is critical to creating well-informed voters. That's why our journalism is free for everyone, even though other newsrooms retreat behind expensive paywalls.
Our journalists will continue to cover the twists and turns during this historic presidential election. With your help, we'll bring you hard-hitting investigations, well-researched analysis and timely takes you can't find elsewhere. Reporting in this current political climate is a responsibility we do not take lightly, and we thank you for your support.
Contribute as little as $2 to keep our news free for all.
Can't afford to donate? Support HuffPost by creating a free account and log in while you read.
Dear HuffPost Reader
Thank you for your past contribution to HuffPost. We are sincerely grateful for readers like you who help us ensure that we can keep our journalism free for everyone.
The stakes are high this year, and our 2024 coverage could use continued support. Would you consider becoming a regular HuffPost contributor?
Dear HuffPost Reader
Thank you for your past contribution to HuffPost. We are sincerely grateful for readers like you who help us ensure that we can keep our journalism free for everyone.
The stakes are high this year, and our 2024 coverage could use continued support. If circumstances have changed since you last contributed, we hope you'll consider contributing to HuffPost once more.
Support HuffPostAlready contributed? Log in to hide these messages.