Mouth soreness can have various causes, ranging in severity from 'serious' to 'generally fatal'. Finding the true cause means ruling out or confirming each possibility – in other words, diagnosis.
Diagnosis is usually a complex process due to the sheer number of possible causes and related symptoms. In order to diagnose mouth soreness, we could:
Cause | Probability | Status |
---|---|---|
Mouth Cancer | 99% | Confirm |
Mercury Toxicity | 54% | Possible |
Do you have any tenderness, soreness or open sores inside your mouth that have been present for over 2 weeks? Do not include Mouth Ulcers or known injuries.
Possible responses:
→ No / ulcers/injuries / under 2 weeks / don't know→ Yes, mild mouth tenderness/soreness/sores → Yes, significant mouth tenderness/soreness/sores |
Warning signs for oral cancer include unexplained mouth pain or open sore(s) in the mouth that don't go away within a week or two.