Hi there,

I had one of my upper wisdom teeth extracted six weeks ago by my dentist. The tooth was impacted and there were concerns that it may have caused me problems in the future. The extraction (under local anesthesia) seemed to go well and was very quick, took less than a minute.

A day or so after the extraction, the pain seemed to be worsening. I was also having a lot of trouble opening my mouth and it was difficult to even fit a spoon in. Three days after my extraction, I went back to the dentist who diagnosed me with dry socket, cleaned out and packed the extraction site and put me on a short course (3 days) of antibiotics, in case of any infection.

The pain gradually lessened, my mouth opening improved and within a week or so everything seemed to be healing nicely. I went back for another check to my dentist who agreed that everything looked good.

About a week ago, I noticed a strange taste coming from one side of my mouth, at the top, where the tooth had been removed. It reminded me of the taste of the dry socket packing, and I wondered if it was the last of it working its way out. However, over a few days the bad taste worsened and so I went back to my dentist again.

After checking again, the dentist said my gum was almost healed and no signs of infection were showing and perhaps the taste was due to food getting stuck around the healing extraction site. I didn't really have pain and could open my mouth normally again.I was advised to rinse with salt water (I'd already been doing this for a few days at this stage) or alcohol free mouthwash and to use an interdental brush to remove any stuck food particles which may get trapped in the indentation.

A few days later, despite rinsing with salt water 4-5 times a day and gently cleaning the area, there was no improvement. Worried, I returned again to my dentist who took an X-ray, and saw no problems with the area, although my sinus did appear cloudy on it. I do suffer from ongoing sinus problems and my sinus was cloudy in the pre-extraction X-ray also. I'm due to go back for a cleaning in a couple of weeks and the extraction site will be checked again then.

I'm really concerned that this bad taste is the sign of an infection somewhere around the extraction site. The taste is metallic- like and is there all the time except when I'm eating or brushing my teeth. The dentist seemed to think it might be a sinus infection & post nasal drip causing the taste, but as I said I suffer regularly with my sinuses and haven't ever had this taste before. Also, it seems to be coming from just that one area of my mouth. The gums/ teeth on that side are aching a bit and the extraction site is still quite tender to touch. I also suffer from TMJ issues, so it's sometimes hard to tell where pain might be coming from.

Sorry for such a long post, but I'm so worried that this is some kind of serious infection. Any advice on what I should do next?

Thank you.