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Review
. 2014 Feb 1;6(1):e74-80.
doi: 10.4317/jced.51313. eCollection 2014 Feb.

Prevention and treatment of oral mucositis in patients receiving chemotherapy

Carlos Alvariño-Martín  1 , Maria G Sarrión-Pérez  2
Affiliations
Review

Prevention and treatment of oral mucositis in patients receiving chemotherapy

Carlos Alvariño-Martín et al. J Clin Exp Dent. .

Abstract

Oral mucositis is one of the most common side effects of cancer treatment (chemotherapy and/or radiotherapy). It is an inflammatory process that affects the mucosa of the oral cavity, giving rise to erythematous areas in combination with ulcers that can reach a large size. The true importance of oral mucositis is the complications it causes - fundamentally intense pain associated to the oral ulcers, and the risk of overinfection. This in turn may require reduction or even suspension of the antineoplastic treatment, with the risk of seriously worsening the patient prognosis. This points to the importance of establishing therapeutic tools of use in the prevention and/or treatment of mucositis. The present study offers a literature review of all the articles published over the last 10 years referred to the prevention and/or treatment of oral mucositis associated to chemotherapy. Key words:Oral mucositis, management, prevention, treatment, chemotherapy.

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Conflict of interest statement

Conflict of interest statement:The author denies any conflicts of interest related to this study.

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