My wife has been suffering from broken/chapped corners of her mouth since about November of last year. It almost got better in the Spring, but then came back strong.
We live in Michigan. My wife visited California last week for a full week and it went away while there. As soon as she came back(last Wednesday), the corners got chapped and sore again. Now, we lived in Michigan for August, September, and October of 2005 before this happened.
I thought it was just a winter thing, but it’s been quite bad.
She’s used Blistex medicated, Chapstick medicated, Chapstick’s Overnight Treatment, and Petroleum Jelly on her lips, all which have not done a whole lot.
They get a bit better during the day, but worsen over night.
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Any idea what might be causing this? I get it a bit in the winter, but never in summer/fall/spring.
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Any idea what she can do to cure this?
Thanks!
If it’s what I’m thinking of, my mother battles the same condition, it’s called angular cheilitis.
It can be caused by infection, vitamin B deficiency, dehydration and sometimes affects elderly folks who spend too much time without their dentures in.
Infection can be bacterial or fungal, so a trip to the doctor might be in order to rule that out.
However, if it cleared up for a week and then came back I doubt it’s infection to blame. Up the daily water intake, continue with the medicated lip balm and increase the B complex and that should fix it.
IANA doctor, but I have a friend who has this, and in his case, it’s caused by an oral candida (yeast) infection. Might be worth a trip to the doctor to have a culture done. (My friend, who is a plant pathologist, treats his by gargling with a mixture of Listerine and Monistat cream! :eek: His theory: mucosa is mucosa, regardless of where it’s located. I am NOT recommending this!)