Canker sores: treatment

There is no specific or reliable treatment that consistently and effectively controls canker sores. Applying corticosteroid medication directly to the ulcers is the most commonly used treatment. This tends to reduce pain and may shorten the time of healing but does not prevent ulcers from recurring. Chlorhexidine, a mouthwash originally developed to assist in managing periodontal disease, may reduce the number of days with ulcers and increase the days without ulcers. For canker sore treatment it has been used as a 0.2% rinse and must be used daily. Chlorhexidine can cause staining of the teeth and this may limit its usefulness. Antibiotic treatments, both systemic and topical, are sometimes used to reduce the severity of the ulceration, but evidence is lacking as to whether they reduce the recurrence rate.

A large number of other medications and substances have been advocated for the treatment of canker sores but they have not been tested clinically, and none has emerged to replace the treatments described above. Since the condition is not a progressive disease, treatments that have risks of serious side effects should be avoided.

The dental specialty of oral medicine includes training in the diagnosis and management of oral ulcers including canker sores; a dentist with this specialty would be the appropriate professional to consult about mouth ulcers and canker sores.