Definition:
Bad breath is known medically as halitosis. It pertains to bad odor emanating from an individual’s oral cavity, usually as a result of poor hygiene, certain diets, or bacterial infections.
Diagnosis:
Bad breath can be easily diagnosed through its symptoms. Persistent bad breath may need further diagnostic tests to determine the exact dental or medical cause.
Treatment:
Most cases of bad breath can be cured through improvements in the affected individual’s dental hygiene. However, in cases where bad breath is a symptom of some underlying dental or medical condition, treatment efforts must be targeted at treating those conditions first.
Symptoms and Signs:
Bad breath is itself a symptom. It usually manifests as an unpleasant smell or repulsive odor from an individual’s mouth or oral cavity. Bad breath can be detected when an affected individual speaks or breathes close to another person.
Causes:
Bad breath can be attributed to numerous possible causes. A person’s dietary intake has been known to produce bad breath. Ingesting onions, garlic, and other foods with pungent oils will cause halitosis. Other causes include: poor dental hygiene; certain underlying dental conditions such as plaque and gingivitis; a dry mouth low in saliva; smoking tobacco; plus some diseases such as chronic lung infections, lung abscesses, and mouth, throat, and nose infections.
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