Alternative diagnosis, treatment for mouth ulcers

November 10, 2010 By

DEAR DR. GOTT: I am writing in reference to the 46-year-old woman who was diagnosed with Behcet’s disease in Memphis, Tenn.

In my mid-40s, I kept having recurring mouth sores. I could have from two to 30 at a time. This made speech and eating difficult. I went to many doctors in the area (also in Memphis) and was diagnosed with many things, including mouth thrush, vitamin B deficiency, an ulcerated digestive system from mouth to anus and an allergic reaction to peanuts and fried foods.

No one could give me any relief, and everywhere I went, I received a different diagnosis.
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Behcet’s information is plentiful

October 1, 2010 By

DEAR DR. GOTT: My 46-year-old daughter has been diagnosed with Behcet’s disease after several years and after seeing several doctors. She usually has outbreaks in her mouth twice a year, sometimes more often if she has a stressful situation occur.

There don’t appear to be any doctors in the Memphis, Tenn., area who are familiar with this disease. Is there a teaching hospital in the United States that specializes in, or is doing research on, the topic?
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Hope for Behcet’s patients

June 13, 2010 By

DEAR DR. GOTT: This letter is in regards to your recent article concerning the woman with Behcet’s disease.

I was diagnosed with Behcet’s in 1990 and saw 27 doctors before being diagnosed and finding my way to remission. The woman in your article is suffering from one of the worst parts of Behcet’s: the inability to eat due to mouth and throat lesions. She is starving to death, and at this point, food is the medicine that she needs more than anything. This, too, happened to me. I lost 80 pounds and was in bed for months, waiting to die. Finally, a doctor prescribed Costanzi’s solution, a compound used for those with mouth cancer, etc. I know you cannot prescribe medication, but this woman needs to know that Costanzi’s will allow her to swallow again. It kills the pain long enough to take those much-needed bites of food. All she needs to do is swish and swallow, wait a few moments, and then eat or drink.
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Behcet’s uncommon and troublesome

March 28, 2010 By

DEAR DR. GOTT: My sister is a 50-year-old widow with four children who has been diagnosed with Behcet’s disease. Her symptoms began last spring with some arthritis. She then developed horrible sores on her body and a terrible one in her throat. Then her eyes became involved. She has had to quit work and is in almost constant pain. Some nights she has to go to the hospital because she cannot stand the pain.

She has seen a number of specialists, but this is tiring for her and usually involves travel. We live in a small Canadian province without much diversity, so it was only by chance that the ophthalmologist she saw recognized the symptoms because he was from another country.
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