Meth Mouth – A Hit a Day Will Keep The Dentist…Close!
January 14, 2014 at 9:19 AM
Meth mouth is a severe dental condition brought on by the abuse of crystal meth, usually manifesting itself through severe tooth decay and loss, as well as enamel erosion. For a dentist, treating meth mouth can be anything but easy, as the meth user may usually have cardiac problems from the abuse of the meth, which can be expounded when local anesthetic is introduced into the equation.
The thing about meth mouth is, it’s less from the use of meth and more from the symptoms developed directly afterwards. Meth use causes a severe reduction in saliva production in the mouth, although exactly how is not entirely clear. The extreme dry mouth (xerostomia) leads to excessive grinding of teeth (bruxism) and also intense cravings of sugary foods and drinks. Since the effects of the abuse last for days at a time, users often go the entire length without any dental hygeine, to which all the sugar and carbonated drinks have a field day burrowing into the enamel.
The treatment for this affliction is usual found in the dentist’s prescription of flouride, which fights tooth decay, and drugs to help saliva production. However, none of this will do a bit of good without the most important education, which is that of the patient to know that they are only abusing themselves
View more reasons to never do meth here
