Mouth ulcers

[FionaVanDieken]

Morning people. Hope you are all feeling positive today. I'm suffering with ulcers in my mouth due to methotrexate I think, any ideas how to soothe the pain in the them and possibly prevent them? X

[Deniseelk]

Hello there. Sorry to hear this as I can recall how troublesome they can be at all times. I often could have up to 7 at any one time which would take ages to go. I spoke to my hygienist who said when you have them there is no magic cure however she said using a mouthwash “ Gengigel” at each brushing and holding it in the mouth as long as possible will help aid their healing quicker. She explained it was that the ingredients are similar to some that naturally occur in the mouth to heal. I am in the UK and found it in Boots for around £7. Do speak to your Rheumatologist as I wonder if they relate to depleted Folate due to the Methotrexate and maybe you could increase your Folic Acid. I took it 6 days a week ( not on Methotrexate day). Interestingly, since stopping Methotrexate I rarely get any ulcers. Hope you get them sorted soon.

[FionaVanDieken in reply to Deniseelk]

Thank you for the info, never heard of depleted foliate? I already take folic acid every day except methotrexate day. I have quite alot, 4 on tounge, and the rest of mouth is also covered, my partner and children are quite enjoying me not being able to talk so much though! X

[Connie1566 in reply to FionaVanDieken]

I had a similar issue with methotrexate. Leukovorin is another form of folic acid which im told is metabolized better by the body and it helped me with mouth and nose sores.

[Fruitandnutcase]

I get mouth ulcers and even more horrible I get cold sores on the roof of my mouth. I’ve changed my toothpaste to one with no additives, I use one called Himalaya Botanique that I buy from Amazon. I also rinse my mouth with salt crystals dissolved in warm water - especially at night and I got a mouthwash made by mouthulcers.co.uk/gengigel-... - I find salt water rinses best though.

[FionaVanDieken in reply to Fruitandnutcase]

Salt 🤮! You are brave, my stomach flips so easy. Thanks for advice xxx

[Fruitandnutcase in reply to FionaVanDieken]

Ah, I use fleur de sel - bought it in France while visiting a salt producer and I don’t make it so strong that my face screws up.it seems to do the trick though.

[Simba1992]

Hello here is something that may help. This is what a known rheumy says about mouth ulcers caused by Mtx.

rheumnow.com/content/dsb-ma...

[FionaVanDieken]

Thanks x

[weathervane]

Try gargling with salt water and cider vinegar, can help.

[helixhelix]

Changing to injectable MTX solved it for me. From a mouthful of ulcers to none in the space of 2 weeks..

Previous to changing I found old fashioned salt water gargles the best thing to sooth them.

[Gracie2019]

I can truly empathize with you on this. I had horrible mouth sores from the MTX. I found a warm water salt rinse several times daily was most soothing.

At times, drinking/swishing my mouth with a cold glass of milk also gave some temporary relief.

On OTC spray called Chloraseptic has been helpful to temporarily numb the pain, as well as other OTC products such as Orajel or other numbing meds.

Peace to you and prayers for relief.

[Lizard28]

Diflam Spray works for me, numbs them enough to be able to eat. Get it in most chemists.

[Mmrr]

Mouth ulcers and mucositis the bain of my life with MTX !

I use difflam oral / throat rinse and find that preventative measures help best. So after injecting I brush my teeth and use the rinse, then again before bedtime. I find hot tea/coffee make things worse, so only drink cold water or cooled green tea on the evening of injecting and next morning.

Sugary foods are an absolute no, no ... chocolate being one of the worst culprits.

Things usually settle after a few days, then it is time to inject again 🙄

[pd118]

I learnt to inject upper legs - love - read gets into body 70 % better than pills

[Joy_1]

Hi

I have posted a number of times on the solution that was 100% effective for me. Saline. It was nice to hit on something that was simple + non expensive + 100% effective.

When I first hit 15mg of MTX I began to get horrific mouth ulcers. It was worse than having RA. All sorts of weird and wonderful recommendations were suggested in the way of mouthwashes, sucking sweets etc. So I made a beeline to a pharmacist and he said. Don't waste your money just use saline (salty water), 5 times a day.

I found holding the saline in my mouth for 1 minute was best as my mouth was way to sore to swill the water about. Also if you use warm water more salt will dissolves in it. After 2 weeks all my mouth ulcers disappeared. After that the pattern was the same for a few months. Within 48hrs of taking my MTX I could feel the first signs of mouth ulcer pain so it was 2 days of saline and they'd be gone. After a couple of months the mouth ulcers gave up. Nowadays (3 years down the road) I get the odd mouth ulcer emerging when I feel stressed and then it's back to the saline for a couple of days.

Joy

[mistymeana]

This might sound odd but when I used to get mouth ulcers I found liquorice very effective. Once it's softened a little hold it against the ulcer for as long as you can. I got them quite often and found dissolving a piece of liquorice in my mouth every day could help keep them at bay sometimes. The trick is to just let it slowly soften and dissolve in your mouth.