Stomatitis Stomatitis Stomatitis is inflammation of the mouth and lips. It refers to any inflammatory process affecting the mucous membranes of the mouth and lips, with or without oral ulceration. In its widest meaning, stomatitis can have a multitude of different causes and appearances. Common causes include infections, nutritional deficiencies, allergic reactions, radiotherapy, and many others. When inflammation of the gums and the mouth generally presents itself, sometimes the term "gingivostomatitis" is used, though this is also sometimes used as a synonym for herpetic gingivostomatitis. The term is derived from the Greek "stoma" (), meaning "mouth", and the suffix "-itis" (),
Aphthous stomatitis history, suggesting that some people are genetically predisposed to suffering with oral ulceration. HLA-B12, HLA-B51, HLA-Cw7, HLA-A2, HLA-A11, and HLA-DR2 are examples of human leukocyte antigen types associated with aphthous stomatitis. However, these HLA types are inconsistently associated with the condition, and also vary according to ethnicity. People who have a positive family history of aphthous stomatitis tend to develop a more severe form of the condition, and at an earlier age than is typical. Stress has effects on the immune system, which may explain why some cases directly correlate with stress. It is often stated that in studies of