Contents
In line with its mission, the Editorial Board of MedTvoiLokony makes every effort to provide reliable medical content supported by the latest scientific knowledge. The additional flag “Checked Content” indicates that the article has been reviewed by or written directly by a physician. This two-step verification: a medical journalist and a doctor allows us to provide the highest quality content in line with current medical knowledge.
Our commitment in this area has been appreciated, among others, by by the Association of Journalists for Health, which awarded the Editorial Board of MedTvoiLokony with the honorary title of the Great Educator.
Thrush is a symptom of a fungal infection of the mucosa in the mouth of a newborn or infant. It is a common condition, usually mild, and easy to treat. Thrush appears as a white streaky coating on the inside of the cheeks, the roof of the mouth, or in the vestibule of the mouth.
Thrush – causes of its formation
A white palate is a symptom of a mucosal infection caused by the fungus Candadida albicans. Sometimes infection is also caused by Histoplasma, Blastomyces and other opportunistic fungi. A white palate is the result of lesions in the form of thrush. In addition to the mouth, they also appear on the tongue. The spots form a uniform layer of the fungus in the form of a white skin.
When the infection is extensive, thrush is also seen on the palatine arches, in the throat and on the tongue. They can occupy a large area of the oral cavity – sometimes the palate of a newborn can be completely white. Infection can also spread to the larynx, trachea and bronchi. Thrush most often occurs in newborns and infants, less often in older children and adults.
A child can catch thrush from an adult. Sometimes this infection appears in the first days after birth. Infection can also occur as a result of sucking on an infected mother’s breast or a pacifier licked by a sick person. In the case of older children, the cause of the disease is, among others, weakening of immunity, taking antibiotics and teething.
Find out more about oral thrush
Symptoms of thrush in the throat
The infection manifests as white spots that do not have a shape. They may look like white and gray fields. A person with thrush in their throatwhether it is a child or an adult, feels great discomfort. They often cause pain. When the thrush is mild, it does not cause pain. In turn, acute thrush in the throat causes loss of appetite, hoarseness, vomiting, and even a feeling of anxiety.
Thrush in a child’s throat is sometimes confused with food remnants, e.g. with milk or cottage cheese. Removing thrush in a child causes pain as the infection then turns into a bleeding erosion. At the beginning of the development of thrush in the throat is small. However, as they develop, they start to occupy larger and larger areas of the oral cavity.
Thrush in the throat and their diagnosis
It mainly consists in looking for the causes of the disease. In the first stage, the doctor must rule out other conditions, even such as HIV infection, which causes various opportunistic infections. Infections are caused by bacteria that cannot harm people with a properly functioning immune system. In turn, people with weakened immunity can wreak havoc in the body.
The next step in diagnosing thrush in the throat is whether the patient has cancer. If a gastrointestinal infection is suspected, then colonoscopy and gastroscopy may be necessary. Thanks to both tests, it is possible to determine whether a person suffers from mycosis. Throat thrush is diagnosed in adults who suffer from abdominal pain and nausea.
The causes of the formation of a white palate in newborns and older children
One of them is antibiotic therapy. Taking antibiotics can destroy both pathogenic and beneficial bacteria, such as lactic acid bacteria. As a result, the body becomes more susceptible to infections and fungal infections – this leads to the formation of a white palate. However, in newborns, infection usually occurs through the genital tract.
The presence of a white palate in newborns also results from the high susceptibility of pregnant women to fungal infections. This disease most often affects newborns (mainly premature babies), children after the aforementioned antibiotic therapy, cancer patients and people after organ transplants. Removing thrush is not complicated, but it is not worth delaying treatment.
The cause of the disease is also improper hygiene. This happens especially when the child comes into contact with dirty and infected objects or other sick ones. A white palate appears in newborns suckling an infected teat. In older children, infection can occur when they play with dirty toys or eat poorly prepared meals.
Treatment of thrush in children is carried out with the use of topical preparations. However, these drugs should be used gently and applied with a cotton bud or cotton swab. Some preparations for the treatment of thrush in the throat also come in the form of a suspension. A proven home treatment is chamomile infusion by rinsing your mouth several times a day.
Thrush in the throat and mycosis of the digestive system
Although thrush is one of the symptoms of a fungal infection, treatment should not be stopped only after it has been removed. It is also advisable to carry out a thorough diagnosis in terms of the digestive system. The physician should check the causes of the patient’s low immunity. It is important to know that when mycosis attacks the esophagus, it does not give any specific symptoms. Nevertheless, the main symptoms of the disease are considered to be:
- lack of appetite
- indigestion;
- epigastric pain,
- weight loss
- belching.
People who have thrush in their throat also often complain of diarrhea, flatulence, abdominal pain and gastrointestinal bleeding. If a person has these ailments, it is advisable to take a smear from the lesion from the patient and submit it for a microbiological examination. It is also advisable to conduct a microscopic examination and determine which type of fungus caused the infection.
How is thrush treated?
When it turns out that the child has thrush, it is advisable to visit the pediatrician. The doctor determines whether the fungal agents should be administered topically or systemically. The disease can be removed mechanically, e.g. with a finger with gauze wrapped around it, or with the use of an over-the-counter preparation available at a pharmacy. The medicine is rubbed into the diseased mucosa or a few drops are applied to the teat or directly into the baby’s mouth
During treatment, it is imperative to follow the rules of personal hygiene and wash your hands as often as possible. It is definitely inadvisable to use the same cutlery as the sick person so as not to be exposed to an infection. The procedure also depends on the type of infection. On the other hand, if the baby’s soother has not been used for a long time, it should be disinfected.
In addition, there are a few important things to keep in mind:
- If you are still breastfeeding, remember to clean them thoroughly. Examine the skin of both breasts, check if you have developed an infection as well. If necessary, coat the affected skin with the same preparation that you use for your child (unless your doctor tells you otherwise).
- Avoid contact with the mucous membranes of the sick person (using the same cutlery, kissing).
- Pay attention to items that your child puts in their mouth, especially toys. e.g. dirty rattle.
Disseminated fungal infections are much more difficult to treat. Then the therapy is long and often causes side effects, because most antifungal preparations strongly affect the human metabolism, and thus can damage the liver.
The content of the medTvoiLokony website is intended to improve, not replace, the contact between the Website User and their doctor. The website is intended for informational and educational purposes only. Before following the specialist knowledge, in particular medical advice, contained on our Website, you must consult a doctor.