Palliative Mouth Care : Dry Mouth (Xerostomia) : Clinical Presentation

Dry mouth in the terminally ill can be a distressing symptom. What do we see?

dry cracked lips
teeth stick to the lips
difficulty swallowing
dry, cracked, or furrowed tongue
dry mucous membranes
sore mouth, bad breath
crusty oral debris
saliva is ropy, scant or absent
signs of infection

I want to learn about managing:

oral infections <hyperlink to future companion module on Mouth Infections
mouth ulcers and the painful mouth <hyperlink to future companion module on Painful Mouth>
drooling (sialorrhea) <hyperlink to future companion module on Drooling>

Clinical presentation of dry mouth

Risk factors

Objectives for care

Management of dry mouth

Content for this flash card was provided by Pippa Hall, MD and Jay Lynch, RN; Curriculum Interchange Format CIF presentation methodology provided by Growth House, Inc.. For full credits click here.