Throughout the world, many people are affected by oral diseases, which affect the mouth and teeth. The most common are tooth decay, periodontal disease (gum disease), oral cancer, infectious oral diseases, traumatic injuries and hereditary injuries. However, if left untreated, they can cause what is called bad breath. In Guinea, the population is not spared from this reality, especially with a population not aware of the importance of dental follow-up. To lift a corner of the veil on this subject, a reporter from Guineematin.com gave the floor to Dr Mamadou Sadou Barry, dental surgeon.
Bad breath, also called halitosis, is a fairly common problem in the world. It is an unpleasant odor produced by the air that is expelled through the mouth and nose. It is linked to the presence, in the oral cavity, of bacteria that cause odors by breaking down proteins, say specialists.
Doctor Mamadou Sadou Barry, interviewed on this subject by Guineematin.com, provided explanations. “Bad breath is due to several things. There is what is called periodontitis, that is to say that there is the tooth itself, and there is where it is implanted. Diseases of the periodontium cause bad breath, also there are developed tonsils. Behind the mouth, there are the palatine tonsils. There are two at the top, if these tonsils are very large, when you eat food, they retain part of the food you have eaten. And your brush will never reach there to clean the palatine tonsils. This retained food can rot there and when you speak, it smells bad. It is often a consultation with the dentist that can solve this. Cavities are also one of the causes of bad breath. There is also something else that is not caries, it is not brushing the tongue. But, when we say brushing the tongue, it is not about forcing but about caressing. If you force, you will not feel the taste of food. Also, there are some systemic diseases, that is, diseases of the body that are not diseases of the mouth that can cause bad breath. For example, diabetics have a bad mouth odor, sinusitis causes bad breath…. Sometimes, there is also poor oral hygiene, for example, a person who has dirty teeth because he does not brush properly, “he indicated.
Furthermore, this dental surgeon said that the treatment of bad breath is done on a case-by-case basis. “As soon as we discover the cause, the solution is simple. If it turns out that the bad breath is due to oral hygiene, there is what we call a scaling which is recommended every 6 months. But, there are patients who come and we suggest that they do it every 3 months. There are others, it is monthly. We try to evaluate the person’s eating behavior, we give them an adequate treatment plan. If the bad breath comes from periodontitis or cavities, the dentist does a cavity curettage and provides antibiotics. If it comes from the tonsils, then it is surgery. We operate and remove the tonsils. If the bad breath comes from sinusitis, it is the ENT who manages it,” informs Dr. Mamadou Sadou Barry.
In addition, our interlocutor said that bad breath can also come from the stomach. He explains how to treat it at this level. “There, you will have to collaborate with a gastroenterologist. There is a specialty in medicine that treats this type of problem, because most often, it is reflux. There is what is called gastroesophageal reflux, that is to say that the person swallows something and it comes to the stomach, and there is what is called the mouth of the stomach which is called the cardia, which should close when you finish eating. But, there are people where it comes back and there, it is the gastroenterology specialist who will treat these cases, not the dentist. That is to say, when bad breath is there, we run to the dentist and the dentist as a seasoned specialist, he will proceed by method to look for and evaluate the cause. When he finds that the cause is gastroesophageal reflux, he refers the patient to the gastroenterologist to manage the case…”.
However, the dentist advises against self-medication in case of bad breath. “There are medications that, when you take them, the bad breath disappears. But, it is for a set period. You cannot take an antibiotic for your entire life. You take them after a week to 15 days. After that, you stop because if you continue, you will create what is called resistance. That is to say, the bacteria will resist the antibiotics and it will no longer have an effect. And also, if one day you fall ill and these medications are going to treat you, you will no longer be able to be treated with this antibiotic,” he reminds us.
Mariama Barry for Guineematin.com
