A retrospective study was conducted on patients with burning mouth syndrome 
(BMS) to assess demographics, onset characteristics, temporal behavior 
(frequency), duration, and progression of oral burning symptoms. Additionally, 
treatments provided by health practitioners prior to a definitive diagnosis of 
BMS were analyzed with an overview of current management strategies. The records 
of 49 adult patients diagnosed with BMS were reviewed. Descriptive statistics 
and a Pearson correlation with a statistical significance at p < 0.05 were 
utilized to analyze the data. The majority of patients were mid-life white women 
who reported a sudden onset of constant oral burning symptoms that increased in 
intensity. On average, patients reported oral burning symptoms for 41 months 
(standard deviation = 73.5, range = 2-360 months, median = 20 months), and 38 of 
the patients received/trialed 71 various interventions (mean = 1.9) prior to 
receiving a definitive diagnosis for their oral burning symptoms. This study 
sample shared many characteristics with those reported previously in the 
literature. The authors found that patients frequently reported delays in 
receiving a definitive diagnosis with an array of various trialed interventions. 
For this reason, the authors provide this overview of current management 
strategies in order to assist dental practitioners in providing appropriate 
interventions for patients with BMS.