The gums, also known as the gingiva, form an important aspect of our smile. Their presence in the mouth and the role they play means that we must pay attention to them. Gums too can be and sources of infection that can compromise our general health. One of the noticeable changes about the gums is when they enlarge or swell. In this blog, we are going to see what the causes of the swelling are and how we can manage them.

We group gum enlargement causes into inflammatory causes, systemic disease causes, neoplasm associated causes, drug induced causes, hypersensitivity, and so on.

Inflammatory causes are those where the gum swells in response to an infection in the mouth, i.e., gingivitis. It comes from an accumulation of debris on the teeth, which causes the gums to fall sick. Systemic causes are those where a change in the body’s function manifests through enlargement of the gums. For example, pregnancy, puberty or malnutrition like vitamin C deficiency.

Some drugs can cause gingival enlargement. Drugs used to treat epilepsy, for example phenytoin, those used to treat heart disease, for example Amlodipine, are some of the more common ones that can cause gingival enlargement. Gum enlargement can be an early sign of a malignant lesion developing and so it is something that everyone ought to pay attention to. A case in point is enlargement of the gums can characterize non-Hodgkin’s lymphoma.

Some other symptoms, for example bad breath, mobile teeth, pain and so can also accompany gingival enlargement. It is imperative for one to get a consultation with their oral health care provider who’ll diagnose and advise them accordingly to address the issue early. This is the best way to manage gum enlargement.