Xerostomia
Purpose: A dental hygienist is explaining a term about a client’s oral health condition that increases their risk for cavities.
Parenthetical definition: You have xerostomia (dry mouth) which can cause more cavities.
Sentence definition:
| Term | Class | Distinguishing Factors |
| Xerostomia | excessive dryness of the mouth… | caused by an abnormal lack of saliva due to disease, medications, or blockage. |
Expanded definition:
Etymology:
Xerostomia (excessively dry mouth) is a medical term that derives from two Greek words Xeros meaning dry, and Stoma, meaning mouth.
Negation:
This oral condition is not the same as a dry mouth that everyone can experience occasionally. Instead, this condition is an excessively dry mouth that can lead to oral health problems caused by a lack of normal salivary flow or production by the salivary glands.
Analysis of Parts:
Saliva production occurs within the salivary glands located in our cheeks and under the tongue. The saliva flows through ducts (tube-like passages) into openings in our mouths.
Figure 1 Salivary gland locations.
Source: Mikrostoker. Parotid salivary gland submandibular salivary gland.
Required Conditions:
Saliva is a normal part of a healthy mouth and is required to prevent oral infections, eat, swallow, prevent cavities, and keep mouth tissues hydrated.
Figure 2 Evidence of Xerostomia
Source: Monroe Family Dental. Dry mouth treatment.
Works Cited:
- (2021, January 7).Parotid salivary gland submandibular salivary vector image on VectorStock. VectorStock. Retrieved June 7, 2022, from https://www.vectorstock.com/royalty-free-vector/parotid-salivary-gland-submandibular-salivary-vector-35416035
- The Team at Monroe Family Dentistry. (2020, March 23).Dry mouth (xerostomia) treatment: Monroe family dentist. Monroe Family Dentistry. Retrieved June 7, 2022,from https://monroefamilydentistrync.com/dry-mouth-prevention-tips/
- Online Etymology Dictionary. (n.d.).Xeros: Search Online Etymology Dictionary. Etymology. Retrieved June 7, 2022, from https://www.etymonline.com/search?q=xeros
- Online Etymology Dictionary. (n.d.).Stoma: Search online etymology dictionary. Etymology. Retrieved June 7, 2022, from https://www.etymonline.com/search?q=stoma
- Mayo Foundation for Medical Education and Research. (2018, February 1).Dry mouth. Mayo Clinic. Retrieved June 7, 2022, from https://www.mayoclinic.org/diseases conditions/dry-mouth/symptoms-causes/syc-20356048
- (n.d.).CDHO factsheet xerostomia. CDHO Fact Sheet Xerostomia. Retrieved June 8, 2022, from https://www.cdho.org/Advisories/CDHO_Factsheet_Xerostomia.pdf
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