Dry, chapped, and cracked lips stop simply being a simple condition that will go away with copious amounts of lip balm when you finally see lesions in the corners of your mouth, and it's even more alarming if the cracks are actually opening up and are extremely painful. This condition is known as angular stomatitis. Known variously as perleche or angular cheilitis, angular stomatitis simply manifests as dryness or cracking in the corners of the mouth.

Anybody can be affected by angular stomatitis. Children in particular suffer from it because of repeated lip-licking, while the elderly are also affected by it due to the use of dentures, which typically cause saliva to collect in the corners of the mouth, drying it up and causing damage.

• lip licking
• worsened case of chapped lips
• wearing dentures
• bacteria and viruses
• iron deficiency
• vitamin B deficiency
• diabetes and immune system deficiencies
  

This is probably the most common concern of people suffering from angular stomatitis, naturally because they need to know whether they have to get instant treatment or isolate themselves for other people. The simple answer is that it is not contagious at all. But it is still a good idea to refrain from kissing and other such activities to prevent your condition from worsening.