Thrush

Description / Symptoms

White, irregularly shaped patches in the mouth
Coats the inside cheeks or inner lips
Sometimes coats the tongue. (If the only symptom is a uniformly white tongue, it's due to a milk diet, not thrush)
Adherent to the mouth (cannot be washed away or wiped off easily like milk curds)
Causes mild discomfort or no symptoms
The child is bottle-fed or breast-fed.

Cause

Caused by a yeast (called Candida).

See More Appropriate Topic (instead of this one)

If it doesn't look like thrush, see Mouth Ulcers
If your child also has a diaper rash, see Diaper Rash

Call Your Doctor Now If:

Your child looks or acts very sick
Signs of dehydration (very dry mouth, no tears and no urine in > 8 hours)
Age < 1 month old and looks or acts sick in any way

Call Your Doctor Within 24 Hours If:

You think your child needs to be seen
Fever occurs
Bleeding is present

Call Your Doctor During Weekday Hours If:

Thrush, but none of the symptoms described above. (Reason: may need prescription medicine to treat it)

Home Care (Read "Call Your Doctor…" first):

Decrease Sucking Time to 20 Minutes per Feeding

Prolonged sucking (as when a baby sleeps with a bottle or pacifier) can irritate the lining of the mouth and make it more prone to yeast infection.

For severe mouth pain with bottle feeding, offer fluids in a cup, spoon or syringe rather than a bottle. (Reason: the nipple increases pain).

Limit Pacifier Use to Bedtime

Again, prolonged sucking on a pacifier can irritate the mouth. If your infant is using an orthodontic pacifier, switch to a smaller, regular one. (Reason: bigger ones can irritate the mouth more).

Breastfeeding

If mother's nipples are red and sore, apply Lotrimin Cream (no prescription needed) 4 times per day AFTER feedings.

Diaper Rash

If there's a bad diaper rash, it's also probably due to yeast. Apply Lotrimin cream (no prescription needed) 4 times per day.

Contagiousness

Thrush is not contagious, since it does not invade normal tissue. Your child can go to day care with thrush.

Expected Course

With treatment, thrush usually clears up in 4 to 5 days. Without treatment, it clears up in 2-8 weeks.

Call Your Doctor If:

Your child becomes worse or develops any of the "Call Your Doctor…" symptoms.

Seattle Children's provides healthcare for the special needs of children regardless of race, sex, creed, ethnicity or disability. Financial assistance for medically necessary services is based on family income and hospital resources and is provided to children under age 21 whose primary residence is Washington, Alaska, Montana or Idaho.