• Journal of Oral Medicine and Pain
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• v.44 no.4
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• pp.147-153
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• 2019

Purpose: The aims of this study were to investigate the expectation of patients with burning mouth syndrome (BMS) and assess the relationship between patient expectations and clinical and psychological characteristics. Methods: Eligibility was retrospectively assessed on 93 patients with BMS. A total of five questionnaires on patients' expectation for a visit, pain, sleep quality (Pittsburgh Sleep Quality Index), cognition (Pain Catastrophizing Scale) and psychological distress (Symptom Checklist-90 revised) were measured. Results: Sixty-five patients were included in this study. The top 3 priorities of expectation for a treatment visit to the Department of Oral Medicine were as following; "I want my pain to be free"; "I want to understand why it hurts"; "I want to communicate better with doctors about pain". Patients with priority of pain relief showed poor sleep quality than patients who are more interested in the disease related information. Conclusions: To improve treatment outcomes of BMS, clinicians should improve their own understanding of patients who are suffering from BMS. Inquiring about the patient expectations may be one of them, and it would contribute to the enhancement of patients' overall well-being.

• Journal of Oral Medicine and Pain
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• v.40 no.1
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• pp.3-9
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• 2015

The etiopathogenesis of burning mouth syndrome (BMS) seems to be complex and many patients probably involves interactions among local, systemic, and/or psychological factors in the pathophysiologic mechanism. Although there are controversies over whether the psychological factor is a cause or a result of BMS, several studies have supported strong relationships between psychological factors and chronic pain. It has been suggested that somatic complaints from unfavorable life experiences may influence both individual personality and mood changes; however, initiation of BMS symptoms is not necessarily correlated with stressful life events despite their elevated psychological stress. If the psychological distress is not a causal factor of BMS, it seems that BMS patients may be particularly vulnerable to psychological problems, primarily depression, anxiety, and hostility due to the characteristic entities of BMS such as chronic persistent pain itself. It seems likely that both physiological and psychological factors play a role in causing, perpetuating and/or exacerbating BMS; therefore, both two components of the patient's symptoms must be addressed. The acceptance of psychological factors by the patient is often an important element of BMS, management. The evaluation of psychological and emotional status of BMS patient enables clinicians to recognize prolonged negative and subclinical factors which can complicate the management of pain or indirectly perpetuate other physical factors. This evaluation improves the doctor-patient relationships, motivation, and compliance through a correct understanding of the clinical problem. Appropriate emotional and psychological evaluation may be required prior to developing a treatment plan in order to gain the successful treatment outcome.

• The Journal of Internal Korean Medicine
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• v.34 no.2
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• pp.122-133
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• 2013

Objectives : Burning mouth syndrome (BMS) is characterized by chronic pain or a burning sensation in the mouth. There is limited evidence available to provide clear guidelines for treating BMS patients and a variety of different treatments have been used. This study was designed to investigate the Effects of Korean medicine therapies on oral pain in patients with BMS. Methods : We surveyed 30 BMS patients who newly visited the Oral Diseases Clinic in the Kyung Hee University Korean Medicine Hospital from February 2012 to March 2013. When the patients visited the clinic for the first time, they were evaluated on sociodemographic characteristics, BMS questionnaire, severity of pain using visual analogue scale (VAS) and pressure pain threshold (PPT) of the acupuncture point CV17. After 3 weeks of Korean medicine therapies (acupuncture, electroacupuncture, pharmacopuncture and herbal medicine), they were re-evaluated with the VAS and the PPT. Results : After 3 weeks of Korean medicine therapies, 30 patients' oral pain improved and the PPT score on CV17 rose, which means decrease of qi-stagnation score. Conclusions : Korean medicine therapies were effective on oral pain in patients with BMS. To confirm the additional curative effect and evaluate the efficacy of each treatment, well-designed randomized controlled trials will be needed in the future.

• Journal of Oral Medicine and Pain
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• v.42 no.4
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• pp.116-124
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• 2017

Purpose: Burning mouth syndrome (BMS) is a disabling pain that mostly occurs in elderly women, but rarely in men. It is characterized by an unremitting oral burning sensation and pain without detectable oral mucosal changes. We investigated the clinical and hematologic features of middle-aged men with BMS, and compared the results to those of men with oral mucositis. Methods: Five men with BMS ($48.60{\pm}6.19years$) and five age-matched controls with oral mucositis ($49.80{\pm}15.26years$) underwent clinical and psychological evaluations and blood tests. Psychological status was evaluated using the Symptom Checklist-90-Revised. Cortisol, estradiol, progesterone, testosterone, follicle-stimulating hormone (FSH), luteinizing hormone (LH), adrenocorticotropic hormone (ACTH), and antidiuretic hormone (ADH) levels and erythrocyte sedimentation rate (ESR) were determined from the blood samples. Results: ADH level was significantly lower in men with BMS than in the controls. ADH levels correlated with testosterone (p<0.01), and ACTH levels strongly correlated with ESR (p<0.05). Progesterone level positively correlated with FSH and LH levels. Pain intensity on a visual analogue scale correlated with estradiol level only in men with BMS. Among psychological factors, the obsessive-compulsive disorder, interpersonal-sensitivity, and anxiety scores were higher in men with BMS than in the controls (p<0.05). However, no correlations were observed between the psychological and hematologic factors in both groups. The BMS symptoms presented only on the tongue, with the lateral border being the most prevalent area. Conclusions: Men with BMS may experience dysregulated endocrinologic or psychoneuroendocrinologic interactions, which might affect oral BMS symptoms, aggravating the severity of the burning sensation.

• Journal of Oral Medicine and Pain
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• v.41 no.1
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• pp.21-25
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• 2016

Purpose: Burning mouth syndrome (BMS) is a chronic pain condition involving the oral and perioral regions, often characterized by a burning sensation and pain in elderly patients. In this study, we investigated the effectiveness of pharmacological agents for the treatment of BMS patients through a retrospective chart review. Methods: We enrolled 61 BMS subjects (57 females, 4 males; $66.4{\pm}10.9$ years of age) from among consecutive patients treated pharmacologically from January 2014 to June 2015 at Chonnam National University Dental Hospital. Patients with secondary BMS associated with local factors were excluded. The treatment period, number of pharmacological agents tried, and effectiveness of the drugs administered to each subject were analyzed. Results: The mean treatment period for the management of BMS was 2.5 months. More than three agents were tried to control BMS symptoms in 17 subjects (27.9%); two agents were used in 10 subjects (16.4%), and a single agent in 24 subjects (39.3%). Clonazepam was prescribed most frequently and was effective at relieving symptoms in 30 of 39 subjects (76.9%). Paroxetine was moderately effective, relieving symptoms in 7 of 17 subjects (41.2%). Some of the subjects benefited from tricyclic antidepressants, gabapentin, and lipoic acid. A topical local anesthetic used to supplement other systemic agents had ameliorating effects in four of six subjects. Conclusions: Within the study limitations, clonazepam was the most effective drug and antidepressants were efficacious in some subjects for relieving the symptoms of BMS. These pharmacological agents could be considered as first-line drugs for the management of BMS.

• Journal of Dental Rehabilitation and Applied Science
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• v.35 no.3
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• pp.123-131
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• 2019

Burning mouth syndrome (BMS) is defined as the xerostomia, burning sensation and various discomfort of tongue and oral mucosa. BMS can occur in both men and women, but is more frequent in middle-aged menopausal women. Because exact cause can't be identified clearly and it is hard to make diagnosis in clinic, the purpose of the treatment have been to relieve symptoms. Etiology of BMS is divided into local, systemic, and psychological factors. ${\alpha}$-lipoic acid, clonazepam, supplemental therapy and cognitive behavior therapy can be prescribed for BMS. Nowdays, many experts focus attention on effect of combination therapy. It is necessary to solve the symptoms of the patients by combination of pharmacological approach and psychotherapy with cognitive behavior therapy considering the factors in various aspects.

• Journal of Oral Medicine and Pain
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• v.47 no.3
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• pp.109-116
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• 2022

Purpose: This study was conducted to analyze the clinical characteristics and distribution of the tongue-related diagnoses in patients with tongue symptoms. Methods: The subjects were patients who visited Chosun University Dental Hospital with tongue symptoms from January 1, 2021, to December 31, 2021. We analyzed 491 patients (139 males and 352 females) with tongue-related diagnostic code names in the Korean Standard Classification of Disease (KCD) in the Electronic Medical Record (Dentopinformation Technology Co., Seoul, Korea). Results: On analyzing the diagnoses of tongue diseases using the KCD, glossopyrosis (44.8%) and painful tongue (15.2%) showed high rates. Of the 491 patients, 139 (28.3%) were males and 352 (71.7%) were females, and the average age was 58.1 years. As for systemic diseases, there were many patients with diseases of the circulatory system (27.0%) and endocrine, nutritional, and metabolic diseases (13.7%). Tongue symptoms were discomfort in 58 patients, pain in 329 patients, paresthesia in 10 patients, burning sensations in 222 patients, dysgeusia in 25 patients, dryness in 110 patients, fissures in 57 patients, and other symptoms in 72 patients. Areas with tongue symptoms were the anterior area in 102 patients, the lateral area in 140 patients, the posterior area in 12 patients, the dorsal area in 140 patients, the ventral area in 42 patients, and which area in 126 patients overall. Patients with burning mouth syndrome and oral candidiasis had significantly more tongue symptoms. Conclusions: Patients with tongue symptoms exhibited a variety of tongue diseases. Tongue symptoms were more common in women over 50 years of age and were frequently seen in patients with burning mouth syndrome and oral candidiasis.

• Restorative Dentistry and Endodontics
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• v.37 no.3
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• pp.170-174
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• 2012

The objective of this article was to present two nonodontogenic conditions that may mimic odontogenic toothache: trigeminal neuralgia and burning mouth syndrome. Two cases are presented in which one is related to the upper left second premolar and the other is related to the upper left first molar. Both showed pain when chewing. These two cases highlight the complexities involved in diagnosing nonodontogenic toothache. This article demonstrates the importance of having a thorough knowledge of both odontogenic and nonodontogenic toothache, as well as the need for careful evaluation of the nature of the pain and history, clinical and radiographic examinations.

• Journal of Oral Medicine and Pain
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• v.44 no.4
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• pp.179-182
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• 2019

Sjögren syndrome (SS) is a chronic autoimmune disease characterized by dryness of the mouth and eyes due to lymphocytic infiltration of the exocrine glands. In American European Consensus Group (AECG) criteria, abnormal salivary gland scintigraphy (SGS) result is one of the objective signs of SS and it has been proposed as a valid and non-invasive alternative approach to functional evaluation of salivary gland, especially in the case when unstimulated whole salivary flow is more than 1.5 mL in 15 minutes or other AECG criteria is unmet. Patients with SS are more likely to have the thyroid disease (TD), but this association remains controversial. We present a case of the use of SGS for diagnosis of primary SS and TD in patients with dry mouth and burning sensation of tongue. Through this case, we suggest the usefulness of salivary scintigraphy for screening TD in addition to diagnosis of SS.

• The Journal of Internal Korean Medicine
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• v.39 no.4
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• pp.699-707
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• 2018

Objectives: This study was designed to investigate characteristics of digital infrared thermal imaging (DITI) and quantitative evaluations in patients with burning mouth syndrome (BMS). Methods: We reviewed the clinical records of 38 patients with BMS who visited the Oral Diseases Clinic of Kyung Hee University Korean Medicine Hospital from March 1st, 2018 to June 30th, 2018. The subjects were evaluated with digital infrared thermal imaging (DITI) and for heart rate variability (HRV), unstimulated salivary flow rate (USFR), and the proportion of coated tongue. Results: Most patients showed higher temperatures on the central part of the tongue (T2) than on the middle of the forehead (T1). The patients tended to have a high Low frequency/High frequency (LF/HF) ratio. Statistically significant negative correlations were noted between the age of patients and the temperature of T1 and T2. Statistically significant negative correlations were also observed between the LF/HF ratio and 'T1-T2' values. Conclusions: This study suggests that DITI and HRV are useful for the validation of patients with BMS. Correlations between the result values suggest that sympathetic function acceleration is related to temperature distribution and, ultimately, to symptoms.