Treatment Guidelines

Properly treating oral mucositis (OM) starts at home. As you learned in our Oral Care section, excellent oral care is essential to OM prevention. It also is a very important part of managing OM if you develop it.1 Your health care team also can help you treat OM by prescribing medications or alternative therapies.2

Keeping your mouth clean and healthy can help make your OM less severe. In addition to good oral hygiene and consistent dental visits, you can keep your mouth healthy by avoiding those things that can damage the tissues in your mouth, like spicy foods and tobacco products. Don’t be afraid to talk to your doctor or nurse about your oral care. They are there to offer education and support to help you through your OM.1,3

Your health care team plays a big role in helping you treat OM. The first thing they will do is perform a thorough assessment of your mouth to make sure they catch OM as soon as possible. This also will help them figure out appropriate treatment methods.2

Once your OM has been assessed, your doctor will follow professional guidelines to determine the appropriate treatment path for you. In addition to your thorough oral care, this treatment may include strong pain medications and nonmedical strategies to cope with pain, such as meditation, relaxation and counseling.2

Visit the Managing Pain page in this section to learn more about strategies for managing the discomfort of OM.