General Medical Question - Non Urgent - Painful gums

[when.will.it.end]

I've googled/searched this but can't find anything useful and this has nothing to do with mental health so hopes thats OK.

My gums have been painful for a couple of days. I'm brushing my teeth as normal and don't have any teeth problems. I wouldn't be bothered but it hurts to eat with the food touching my gums although they're not painful to touch with my finger. Drinking isn't a problem, it's just food. Any ideas?

(General info; I've just started taking cyclosporin for Eczema 150mg/day and I know it can screw with your liver and kidneys but I googled that too but can't see any connection. I don't have any other obvious symptoms.)

Thanks.

[Animad]

Sorry it's took a while for you to get a response, I was unable to come on RYL yesterday.

The only connecting between cyclosporin and the gums is the potential increase in infection there. The main thing with gum problems is that the teeth can look clean and beautiful above the gumline though it is below this that counts. It may be that you are developing some inflammation of an infection there and so seeing a dentist may be the best course of action.

Talking to a pharmacist about what you can do in the meantime regarding the pain in your gums would be worthwhile as it is your whole gums I take it. If it is only a portion you could use something like bonjela.

Also, on top of that, you could see if Ibuprofen helps. This is fine to take with cyclosporin and if you're not on any other medication and don't have any medical problems then you could take this as said on the box. Other than that you could also try Paracetamol or talk to a pharmacist about an Ibuprofen or Paracetamol preparation including codeine; co-codamol being the most common.

Some mouth washes may also help. Ones containing Chlorhexidine in the ingredients (such as Corsodyl but there are others) would be the best to try.

[when.will.it.end]

Ok thanks very much. If itd infected would a dentist be able to prescribe antibiotics for that or do they have to come from a doctor? I'll try the other stuff

[Animad]

A dentist would be able to prescribe them, yes, but the problem is you may not be able to tell. Painful gums themselves are signs of probable inflammation, definately if they are raised and reddened and this is a sign of underlying problems whixch may or may not be infectious as well, it's hard to say so it wold be a good idea to see a dentist sooner rather than later just to see what is going on, lessening the need for you to go onto antibiotics, decreasing the amount of damage (some of which with teeth can become long term and irrepairable) and so they can try and see what is the problem and stop this. It's not like a cut where you can easily see early on if it's becoming infected; once there's obvious signs it usually means a GREAT deal of pain and potentially teeth being removed and emergency appointments. So yeah, I'd see a dentist as soon as you can get an appointment really and if they feel necessary then they can prescribe the antibiotics they feel will work. In the meantime I would try with some Corsodyl or similar mouthwash but I'd also book an appointment with a dentist to look at this and see if there are any underlying problems which have caused it; though this may not be the cheapest option in a lot of cases, it is the best.