Symptoms:

Thrush appears as whitish, velvety lesions in the mouth and on the tongue. Underneath the whitish material, there is red tissue that may bleed. The lesions can slowly increase in number and size.

If you are immunocompromised (for example, you are HIV positive or receiving chemotherapy), the infection can spread to other organs, such as the esophagus (causing pain with swallowing), or throughout your body, which can be deadly.

Signs and tests:

Your doctor or dentist can almost always diagnose thrush by looking at your mouth and tongue. These fungal lesions have a distinct appearance. If not entirely clear, one of the following tests may be performed to look for the candida organisms:

• Microscopic examination of mouth scrapings
• Culture of mouth lesions