Hi,

Thanks for query.

There are many causes of dry mouth, also known as xerostomoa.

Drugs are a common cause of dry mouth. Some of these include:
Tricyclic antidepressants, antihistamines, antimuscarinic drugs, anti-epileptic drugs, antipsychotics, beta-blockers and diuretics.

Other causes could be:
Dehydration
Senile, old age
Anxiety can also cause dry mouth.
Sjögren's syndrome - check antinuclear antibody titre (ANA).

Simple measures that help are:

Frequent sips of cool drinks.
Sucking pieces of ice.
Sucking sugar-free fruit pastilles.
Eating partly frozen melon or pineapple chunks.
Sugar-free chewing gum - which stimulates salivation in patients with residual salivary function.
Petroleum jelly - which can be applied to the lips to prevent drying and cracking.

Pilocarpine may be given to improve the dryness.


I hope you might be satisfied with my answer. You are welcome to ask more queries.

Regards.

Dr. Ilyas Patel MD

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