mouth and dental disorders
Acute Necrotizing Ulcerative Gingivitis (ANUG)
Introduction
Acute necrotizing ulcerative gingivitis (ANUG) is a painful infection of the gums that causes fever, sometimes foul-smelling breath, and feeling ill. If the normal bacteria in the mouth overgrow, the gums can become infected. The gums hurt, and people sometimes have extremely bad breath. A professional cleaning, sometimes followed byhydrogen peroxiderinses and antibiotics, plus good oral hygiene are effective. Acute necrotizing ulcerative gingivitis is now rare, but minor gum infections involving just a few teeth probably occur relatively commonly. The severe form usually affects only people with an impaired immune system (for example, due to Human Immunodeficiency Virus (HIV) Infection or immunosuppressive drugs). Acute necrotizing ulcerative gingivitis is not contagious. Acute necrotizing ulcerative gingivitis (ANUG) used to be called trench mouth, a term that comes from World War I, when many soldiers in the trenches developed the infection. The infection is caused by an abnormal overgrowth of the bacteria that normally exist harmlessly in the mouth. Poor oral hygiene usually contributes to the development of ANUG, as do physical or emotional stress, poor diet, and lack of sleep. The infection occurs most often in people who have Gingivitis and then experience a stressful event (for example, final exam week or military basic training). Acute necrotizing ulcerative gingivitis is far more common among smokers than nonsmokers. 