Dear Dr. Gott: For many years, I suffered with horrible breath, despite having had only one cavity in 40-plus years and brushing/flossing/tongue scraping/gargling constantly.

Oral cavity and oropharyngeal exam demonstrated a modified Mallampati class II view and symmetrically enlarged, cryptic tonsils. Dentition appeared normal. There was no macroglossia.

When the folds in the tonsils trap food and dead bacteria, stones can form. If this occurs often, chronic cryptic tonsils may result. This can cause bad breath because of the debris collected.