Why do I have blisters inside my lips? Are they due to cankers sores, ulcer, sunburn or something else? Let us discuss the issue of blisters on the inside of lips including why they appear, treatments and much more.
A blister refers to a pocket filled with body fluids that could be blood, serum, lymph or pus. When inside your lips, they can be on your upper or lower lip, i.e., on the top inner lip or bottom one.
Usually, blisters should heal on their own within seven days, and it is normal to expect some pain as soon as they appear until they heal. However, not all of them cause pain. Some are painless.
On gender and age, they can occur in people of all ages and both sexes, i.e., they can affect newborns, children, adults or older adults both male and female.
It is good to know the exact cause since some causes are contagious while others will increase the vulnerability to secondary infections. Do not disregard any early signs you end up with unless you are sure of what caused them. Some could be cancerous!
Blisters on the inside of lips can occur due to several reasons. They majorly occur due to lip irritation, burn, trauma and some health conditions. Some can be due to a more severe and life-threatening disease, especially if they won’t go away or keep recurring. Ignore them at your peril.
Here are some of the most often causes of blisters on the inner side of your lips.
Cankers sores on your inner lip may be the reason for the blisters or ulcers in this area. They do occur in several other places like the roof of the mouth, inside the cheeks, on the base of the gum and the tongue.
What causes canker sores? The exact cause is not well known. However, according to medical practitioners, genetics, immune system, anxiety and stress, certain medications and diet and other diseases such as Bechet`s syndrome can potentially lead to the canker sore.
The Canker sores are not contagious, and there are many home remedies out there that can be used to get rid of even a bad canker sores cases. However, you need to see your GP for frequently recurring canker sores or multiple canker sores in your mouth.
Cold sores, also referred to as fever blisters are clusters of small pus-filled blisters that can occur inside or outside your mouth, i.e., we can have them inside the cheeks or under the tongue, on the outer or inner lips, on the roof on the mouth and so on
They are caused by herpes simplex virus (HSV). This virus can spread through kissing, sharing personal effects or razors or touching infected fluids. Symptoms of cold sores may be mild or very severe especially during primary infections.
There are several triggers such as fever, sunburns, allergies, colds, certain foods, menstruation, and so on, that influence cold sores recurrence or secondary herpes infections. Because cold sores are contagious, avoid kissing or coming inconstant with infected personal effects.
Water or clear blisters on lips can form when layers of lip skin separate allowing the fluid to be trapped in these layers. They can occur in different parts of the mouth not to mention on other body parts.
They usually cause mild pain although some cases can be extremely painful. One popular painless water blister types is a mucous cyst. It can occur after sucking the lip membrane between your teeth.
There are many factors or condition that cause water blisters on the inside of lips. These include the infections, lip biting, friction, food allergies or reaction to cosmetic applied on your lips.
An extreme case of sunburn on unprotected lips can also result to blisters on the inside of the lips if you are fond of opening your mouth. The lower lip is commonly affected.
Sunburn can also heighten the possibility of suffering from lip cancer. Therefore, ensure you protect them from sunburns using a recommended type of sunscreen.
Among other symptoms of sunburned to expect to include swollen lips, redder and tender lip skin.
Mild to moderate cases of sunburn in this area can be treated with the various home remedies. However, for severe cases which might include a swollen tongue or mouth, please seek emergency medical attention.
It is possible to end up with blood blisters on your mouth or your outside or inside part of your lips. It is nothing much to cause worry. They usually take the shortest time possible to heal of their own, so don’t panic a lot. Moreover, many causes of such blisters in your mouth can be treated.
Common causes include oral trauma and lip biting, rupture epithelial tissues under your lip tissues. More reasons for include allergic reactions, alcohol abuse or herpes.
Blisters inside of the lip can also be due to conditions that can cause inflammation in the lips. These conditions include the following:
In most cases, lip blisters aren’t severe. In rare cases, they can be due to serious causes. When from a serious cause, delayed treatment would result in severe complications and even , permanent lip damage or deformity.
A significant point to note is that sometimes the symptoms occurring alongside lip blisters may also involve other body systems. These blisters may also accompany the following symptoms:
As noted, these blisters can also occur alongside symptoms affecting other body systems such as a rash anywhere in the body, headache, dizziness, body aches, enlarged lymph nodes, ill feeling, thirst feeling and stuffy nose.
Finally, some symptoms such as high fever, difficulty speaking, breathing, swallowing or loss of consciousness must be attended to by a qualified physician.
Other possible complications could include the spread of infections, cancer, organ failure and skin ulceration.
Newborns and babies can also develop blisters on their mouth and lips. Most of their causes are similar to what we have already discussed. However, some reasons might be specific to young children.
For instance, blisters on toddler’s lips can result from breastfeeding. They may result from vigorous sucking on the breast, bottle or the milk pumps.
Also, there are certain cases where blisters are present at birth mainly “because of thumb sucking in the womb,” [parents.com]. Such blister or would vanish few weeks after birth, but you should manage them carefully to prevent infections.
However, if such birth-blisters keep on coming, then you should take the newborn to the healthcare professional.
Fever blisters and cold sores can affect toddler. Other causes may involve allergies, weakened immune system among others.
Treatment will depend on the type of the blister or the underlying causes as well as the severity. Some treatments will be the same as those you could use on any blister anywhere on your body.
Although some will go away of their own, some may require treatments to help manage some severe symptoms as well as treat their causes.
There are many ways or treatment to cure blisters on the inside of lips. They include prescription treatments, over the counter products as well as home remedies or lifestyle changes.
Home remedies for lip blisters are mainly oral or topical remedies. Here is how to quickly heal an ulcer inside of the lip or blister and prevent future outbreaks from occurring.
This oil has anti-fungal, antibiotic and antiseptic properties that make it ideal for any blisters or any skin lesion. Put few drops of tea tree oil directly on the blister. It would stop the inflammation and keep any secondary infection at bay. Apply the remedy twice daily.
Vanilla is also another home remedy that is very effective especially for fever blisters. It has an anti-bacterial property affects virus causing the cold sores. It reduces inflammation and pain as well. Extract pure vanilla and use a cotton ball to apply it directly on the blister. Do these three times a day.
This home product is another great one. It balances the pH level on the lip skin and also kills the germs responsible for cold sores.
Mix apple cider vinegar with ice water and drink it. Alternatively, you can still use a cotton ball to apply it directly on the blisters. Do this remedy thrice in a day.
Aloe vera gel is one of the most effective home products for blister inside lips. It has been used for years treating many skin disorders.
Apply fresh aloe vera gel on the blister. Leave it there for sometime and after that rinse off using lukewarm water. For fast result, apply the procedure thrice in a day.
Honey has great antibiotic properties. Also, it soothes any pain, itch, and inflammation.
To use it , consume one tablespoon of honey daily or apply honey on the blister and leave it for around 7 minutes and then rinse off with water.
Other many home remedies can be as good as the above home remedies. Some of these remedies include:
For excellent results, you should decide on which remedy you want to use and use it consistently if you are to get desired results fast.
In cases where lip blisters don’t improve within few weeks, victims should seek medical care. There may be complications involving other body organs or the infection that can spread to the surrounding areas such as tongue, mouth roof, and cheeks.
Commonly prescribed treatment involves antiviral, bacterial or fungal creams and tablets depending on the cause. Creams are most active during primary infection. The topical antibiotic can also be applied to prevent secondary infections.
Common prescriptions may include medicines such as valacyclovir, famciclovir, acyclovir, and penciclovir.
More tips to manage this condition may include:
As we have seen, these blisters on lips have many causes. Luckily, almost all of them are treatable. We recommend early treatment as soon as you notice any sighs.
In cases where you do not know the cause, go for diagnosis by a doctor who will them prescribe the right medications.
In case of any symptoms that don’t respond to OTC drugs of the home remedies, seek medical help from a qualified practitioner.
