PROLOTHERAPY A GREAT ALTERNATIVE TREATMENT FOR
BURNING MOUTH SYNDROME
Ross A. Hauser, M.D.

If your tongue feels like it is on fire and all your tests come back negative you are probably going to be diagnosed with burning mouth syndrome (BMS). While this can be the only symptom, in cases that have come to me for an evaluation I usually find other symptomology which lends support to the fact that BMS can be one of the manifestations of Barre-Lieou Syndrome or posterior cervical sympathetic syndrome. Regardless of what you call it, I believe the disorder involves the autonomic nervous system. It is another disorder where a person has an overactive sympathetic nervous system and because there is no test to ‘definitively prove’ this, the patient goes from doctor to doctor without much help for the symptoms.

Burning Mouth Syndrome involves severe pain in the tongue and oral mucosal surfaces of the mouth. It typically gets worse the more a person talks. Because laboratory and radiological data are often normal, no clear etiological basis for the condition exists. Thus, traditional doctors sometimes believe the symptoms are psychological in nature. I believe the symptoms are an overactive sympathetic nervous system. So how to treat it?

BMS occurs most commonly in postmenopausal women. Those not on natural hormone replacement in my experience have a tendency to have an overactive sympathetic nervous system, thus ‘hot flashes.’ Hot flashes are another manifestation of an overactive autonomic nervous system. What are some other signs or symptoms?

• Throat secretions
• Dizziness
• Headache
• Prickling/tingling sensations in face and down arms
• Inability to see/focus as well at dusk (or in the dark)

The sympathetic nerves that go to the mouth/face are just anterior to the Cervical vertebrae. Any type of excessive movement of these vertebrae anterior could irritate these nerves. Thus, I find a high association of BMS with Barre-Lieou Syndrome. So how to treat the symptoms of BMS?

The first question to ask is are there other symptoms alongside of the burning mouth? If a person also has TMJ pain (jaw pain) and/or neck pain, then Prolotherapy is done to the neck and/or TMJ (See TMJ research). If the person has tenderness on exam in the TMJ, neck or stylomandibular ligament, then these structures are treated. The stylomandibular ligament is associated with a condition called Eagles or Ernest’s Syndrome, which also can give symptoms in the mouth, tongue and throat. Again Prolotherapy is the best treatment we have found for these symptoms/conditions.

If it appears that the person has other symptoms including sleepessness, hormone imbalances and mental fatigue and other systemic symptoms, then a comprehensive natural medicine evaluation with Hauser Diet Typing, food allergy testing, and comprehensive hormone testing is done. The person is then placed on the appropriate Hauser Diet, avoiding allergenic foods. If any hormones are suboptimal, these are supplemented using natural hormone replacement. If the person has insomnia then this is dealt with by various herbal supplements and if needed medications.

So is Prolotherapy successful in treating Burning Mouth Syndrome? Like Barre-Lieou Syndrome, if a person’s autonomic nervous system overactivity is due to a neck or other structural lesion, then Prolotherapy is typically very successful at treating this condition. Generally the person is seen every month for three to six visits. In my experience, one series of Prolotherapy injections (3 to 6 visits) is all that is needed.

So if I had burning mouth syndrome I would go see a natural medicine doctor that uses Prolotherapy in his/her practice. A comprehensive natural medicine evaluation along with aggressive Prolotherapy to the involved structures would give the person with BMS the best chance at healing.

If you or someone you know has burning mouth syndrome, let them know that Prolotherapy is another treatment option for them. If they have concomitant TMJ, stylomandibular ligament or neck pain, along with the burning mouth, this would make them a great candidate for Prolotherapy.