Halitosis: Discover the Cause and Say No to It !!!! - An overview

Halitosis or bad breath is a common problem in humans, because of its individual nature this condition can cause social humiliation, emotional and psychological anguish leading to a lack of self-esteem, self-image, and self-confidence. Many patients complaining of halitosis have actual malodor of various causes, whereas others have almost no malodor. It has been suggested that halitosis is a symptom associated with systemic, somatic, emotional status and psychologic disorders. Oral malodor is primarily associated with the condition of the mouth, related to oral hygiene, dental and mucosal status. The foremost step in halitosis is finding the etiology, as the correction of underlying disorder itself can solve the problem. Malodor due to somatic origin can be corrected by dentist, but those subjects of nonoral pathologic halitosis should be referred to medical professional for further investigation and treatment of primary disorders. Persons with pseudohalitosis or halitophobia need to be counseled, with education and explanations of investigative results. In this paper we have discussed the wide range of etiological factors for halitosis and their management.