Long-term prognosis of burning mouth syndrome following treatment

The purpose of this study was to evaluate the long-term prognosis of patients with burning mouth syndrome (BMS) after the termination or discontinuation of treatment and to identify the clinical characteristics that might affect that prognosis. Of 769 patients with an oral burning sensation, 202 with primary BMS who had been treated for at least 3 months were included. Among them, 28 patients who responded to the treatment and 25 patients who did not were assigned to responder and non-responder groups, respectively. Based on telephone interviews, the responders were classified into relapse and non-relapse subgroups, and the non-responder group into persistence and remission subgroups. The majority of responders reported no oral discomfort since their last visit. Compared with the non-relapse subgroup, the relapse subgroup had significantly higher levels of xerostomia at the first visit (P = 0.026) and taste disturbance at the last visit (P = 0.015). The majority of non-responders reported persistent oral discomfort since their last visit. No significant differences were found in the characteristics of oral symptoms between the persistence and remission subgroups. In conclusion, the treatment outcomes in the majority of responders and non-responders were maintained following treatment. Xerostomia and taste disturbance were associated with relapse of oral discomfort in the responders.