CLINICAL CHARACTERIZATION OF PATIENTS WITH BURNING MOUTH SYNDROME

Abstract

<h3>Background</h3> Burning mouth syndrome (BMS) is a condition characterized by burning sensation in the oral mucosa, especially the tongue. It mainly affects women, severely undermining quality of life. Sometimes patients also report xerostomia, a symptom that can appear together with decrease in salivary flow, and dysgeusia. <h3>Objective</h3> To describe clinical characteristics related to patients with BMS (age, sex, location of pain, association with xerostomia or dysgeusia, emotional symptoms, unstimulated salivary flow, and alterations in laboratory tests). <h3>Methods</h3> Nineteen patients with BMS were evaluated. For data analysis, descriptive statistics and unpaired <i>t</i> tests were used. <h3>Results</h3> All patients were women, with a mean age of 61.4 years. Pain was mainly located in the anterior area of the tongue. Fourteen patients presented an additional symptom (73.7%), the most frequent being xerostomia; however, we did not find significant differences in unstimulated salivary flow with the control group. In addition, 73.7% reported feeling stressed, anxious, and/or depressed, and only 5 patients presented an altered laboratory test (26.3%). <h3>Conclusions</h3> BMS is a pain disorder that affects quality of life; the psychological profile is an important aspect to consider in our evaluation because some patients may need a referral for psychological therapy.