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Oral medicine

Management of infected lip fissures in a patient with Down syndrome

British Dental Journal volume 238, pages 329–330 (2025)Cite this article

A Correction to this article was published on 11 April 2025

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A 45-year-old patient with Down syndrome (DS) was referred by his dentist to the Oral Medicine department for a 15-year history of sore, cracked and bleeding lips.

The patient had a background of hypothyroidism, controlled with thyroxine, and reported no history of skin conditions. Previous medical treatments for his lips included long-term, oral lymecycline, miconazole cream and emollients - none of which had resulted in any improvement. The patient attended with his mother, who was concerned about the lack of improvement and the appearance of her son's lips, which had been commented on by friends and family.

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References

  1. Scully C, Van Bruggen W, Diz Dios P, Casal B, Porter S, Davison M-F. Down syndrome: lip lesions (angular stomatitis and fissures) and Candida albicans. Br J Dermatol 2002; 147: 37-40.

  2. Al-Maweri S, Tarakji B, Al-Sufyani G, Al-Shamiri H, Gazal G. Lip and oral lesions in children with down syndrome. A controlled study. J Clin Exp Dent 2015; 7: 2284-2288.

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Author information

Authors and Affiliations

  1. Speciality Dentist in Oral Medicine, Birmingham Dental Hospital and School of Dentistry, 5 Mill Pool Way, Birmingham, B5 7EG, UK

    S. Irhouma

  2. Clinical Senior Lecturer/Honorary Consultant in Oral Medicine, Liverpool University Dental Hospital, Pembroke Place, Liverpool, L3 5PS, UK

    C. McCarthy

  3. Consultant Dermatologist, Wrexham Maelor Hospital, Croesnewydd Road, Wrexham, LL13 7TD, UK

    P. D. Yesudian

  4. Consultant/Honorary Professor of Oral Medicine, Liverpool University Dental Hospital, Pembroke Place, Liverpool, L3 5PS, UK

    E. A. Field

Authors
  1. S. Irhouma
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  2. C. McCarthy
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  3. P. D. Yesudian
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  4. E. A. Field
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Corresponding authors

Correspondence to S. Irhouma, C. McCarthy, P. D. Yesudian or E. A. Field.

Additional information

The original online version of this article was revised.

When this letter was originally published, there were errors in the author affiliations. The correct author list should have read:

S. Irhouma, Birmingham, UK; C. McCarthy, Liverpool, UK; P. D. Yesudian, Wrexham, UK; E. A. Field, Liverpool, UK

The online affiliations have also been updated to reflect this.

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Irhouma, S., McCarthy, C., Yesudian, P. et al. Management of infected lip fissures in a patient with Down syndrome. Br Dent J 238, 329–330 (2025). https://doi.org/10.1038/s41415-025-8521-x

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1038/s41415-025-8521-x

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