Oral Thrush

Oral thrush is a fungal infection in the mouth, commonly caused by Candida Albicans.
It occurs normally when the immune system is weak due to:

Stress
Infection
Irritation occurred to the mouth e.g. injury
Elderly
Very young
Pregnant
Malnourished
Have multi-organ failure
Severe burns
Have invasive instruments in their bodies i.e. pacemakers, catheters
Long term weak immune system condition
In particular Diabetes (High blood sugar levels lead to better conditions for the yeast (fungus) to grow)
Medication

Source: exodontia

Source: byebyedoctor

Source: Wikipedia

Source: Yeast Infection and Candida Albicans

Breast feeding when baby has oral thrush or nipple has skin thrush

Oral thrush is very common is young babies and hence it can affect the mother during breast- feeding.

If treatment is required and one is using a cream on nipple area, do the following:

Wash the nipple area and pat dry
Breast feed the child and/or express the milk (if too painful) – do not stop breast feeding
Apply the cream straight away once finished breast feeding (if one wants an anti-fungal cream, this should be prescribed by your Medical Doctor to rule out any serious underlying infection (See our Infection service for further information).
Follow the above procedure when breast feeding the baby
Check with Pharmacist/Medical doctor on how often to apply the cream, as the application may need to increase because one has to maybe keep washing the cream off.

Tongue colour conditions:

Black tongue colour: Tobaccos use, Poor hygiene
Purple tongue colour: Poor blood circulation, Heart condition, Kawasaki disease
Grey tongue colour: Eczema, geographical tongue (dry mouth, dehydration)
Orange tongue colour: Poor oral hygiene, Dry mouth, Antibiotic use
White tongue colour: Oral thrush, Lichen planus
Red tongue colour: Scarlet fever, Allergic reaction, Vitamin B deficiency
Yellow tongue colour : Poor oral hygiene, Bacterial infection/growth, Jaundice
Green tongue colour: Bacterial infection/growth, Fungal infection, Lichen planus
Blue tongue colour : Lack of oxygen in blood (anaemia, respiratory), Eczema

Symptoms

Does one have:

White spots or patches (joined together called plaque) or a yellow cream colour like curd/cottage cheese on gums and/or roof of mouth, side of cheeks, throat and/or tongue?

Burning sensation in the mouth or on the tongue (particularly if on long term 'broad spectrum' antibiotics, Acute atrophic candidiasis)?

Further questions if a baby:

Breast fed mothers:

Infants may pass this infection off to their mothers during breastfeeding
If thrush goes untreated, the infant and mother may continue to pass the infection back and forth to each other in a constantly repeating cycle.

Cracked, red, or sensitive nipples, shiny or flaky skin on or around the nipple, extreme pain during breastfeeding, and painful nipples between feedings?

Check whether you need to go to hospital ('Hospital Emergency') (free)
Check minor ailment symptoms (free)
Check General tips and treatments related to minor ailment conditions via report (free)
Check medical conditions related to symptoms
Check medication related to symptoms
Check when to see a medical doctor
Check infections via symptom checker
Check advanced medical diseases via symptom checker
Check medical diseases (related to the system) - A-Z Diseases (free)