[Steve turner]

Hi all my name is Steve, I'm 62 years old help I am new too this site.
My problem is I had a lower wisdom tooth out 13 weeks ago I have not had one day of my old life back as the pain I am in is so bad,that I feel like taking my own life, it feels like I have been attact by a wild annimal and it is trying to rip my face off.The operation was done by an oral surgeon under a general anaesthetic. I have check ups with the surgeon, but all she says is it could take up to a year, she says that she has not damage the nerves, but it may have got bruised by her moving it out of the way, is there. Any way of checking to see if the nerve is damaged, and if so can it be repaired.

Steve in pain.

[ELna]

Hi Steve,
I'm very sorry you are going through this terrible pain! It sounds absolutely awful.
I'm just a fellow sufferer, wish I could help.
I'm sorry to say this but might be a good idea to have it checked by someone else. She might be reluctant to admit if there is a problem for fear of being held responsible. You can not be expected to just suffer peacefully without information and help. If it is nerve damage, even until it gets better over time as she said, there is medication that can help with the pain and get your life back and it's not ibuprofen. (I'm dealing with facial nerve pain from another condition.)
Please hang in there. I'm sure someone knowledgeable will answer soon. Hope you will get better very soon!
Elna

[Bryanna]

Hi Steve,

Welcome to our forum! We can try to help you here. Please hang in there and know that you are not alone and that this pain will eventually subside.

Was the lower wisdom tooth impacted or partially impacted?
Did you have an infection and/or a cyst around this tooth?
Why was it removed?
Is the molar in front of this space root canaled?
When did the pain first start.... the same day, a day later....?
Explain the pain that you are having..... piercing, radiating, throbbing, stabbing?
Can you open your mouth without pain or difficulty? Does your jaw or ear hurt?

Anytime a tooth is extracted there is going to be trauma and bruising within the tissue and bone. The more complicated the surgery, the more trauma and bruising there will be. The area of the tooth extraction will take up to a year to completely heal and fill in with bone. That does not mean that it takes a year to feel better.

Hope to hear back from you with some additional information.
Bryanna

Originally Posted by Steve turner

Hi all my name is Steve, I'm 62 years old help I am new too this site.
My problem is I had a lower wisdom tooth out 13 weeks ago I have not had one day of my old life back as the pain I am in is so bad,that I feel like taking my own life, it feels like I have been attact by a wild annimal and it is trying to rip my face off.The operation was done by an oral surgeon under a general anaesthetic. I have check ups with the surgeon, but all she says is it could take up to a year, she says that she has not damage the nerves, but it may have got bruised by her moving it out of the way, is there. Any way of checking to see if the nerve is damaged, and if so can it be repaired.

Steve in pain.

[Steve turner]

Hi ELNA
Thanks for getting back to me, I have not been in touch as I have been having trouble with my heart rate it keeps dropping and making me feel very faint,the ambulance people say it's nothing to do with the tooth problem, but they have no idear how much pain and distress I am in, it seems like I am not in the real world.
Any how I have spoken to my regular dentist and am seeing him on Monday to ask him to refer me for a second opinion, I need this done very quickly and depending on the cost I may have to pay privately.
Thanks again for your thoughts I will let you know how I get on.
Best wishes Steve

[Steve turner]

Hi BRYANNA
Nice to hear from you,I will try to answer your questions the tooth was not impacted, I had a absis back in July 14 and was given antibiotics, it came back in Feb this year and again given anti Bs,but the dentist referred to hospital as the wisdom tooth showed below the gum,I was sent for a cone beam C T.
The hospital deciided it should come out,I see the surgeon on the morning of the O P for about 4min all she said was ooo you are a bit old to have this done why didn't I have it done when I was younger, my reply was it wasn't a problem then,she said I would be numb for a few days.
I have no molars in front of the tooth,the pain started on day 2 after the O P.
The pain is piercing and stabbing,my chin half of my bottom lip, gum and teeth are numb to touch but are producing lots of discomfort and pain.
My jaw does not hurt but opening my mouth is painfull as it feels like my lips are split where they join each other,pain is constant and it really fills like a dog has got its teeth in my jaw and just pulling at it. I am taking nortriptyline 10 mg but not doing any good, heart rate keeps dropping but ambulance and hospital says it's not connected.i just feel like enough is enough. Hopefully will get a second opinion soon.
Thanks for your concern. Steve

[Bryanna]

Hi Steve,

Okay, thanks for answering all those questions because it brings some clarification to your situation

It may help you to understand a few things about wisdom teeth..........

When a wisdom tooth is covered by gum tissue and not at all exposed above the gum line then it is impacted. It can be either a partial or full bony impaction. Partial meaning only part of the tooth was in bone and the other part was just covered by gum tissue. Full bony impaction means the tooth was embedded solidly in bone. Generally the more impacted the tooth is in the bone, the more extensive the surgery is to remove it. The older we get the more dense the bone becomes which makes the removal of the tooth more invasive and more traumatic to the jaw bone, extending bundles of nerves, ligaments and muscle structure. Also, anytime there is or has been an abscess in that confined area, there is a lot more surgical debridement needed to remove the diseased tissue and bone. So a lot of surgical work was done in that area of your mouth and jaw bone.

For the first day after the extraction there is significant swelling that may or may not be apparent on the outside of the face, but it is definitely taking place within that area of bone. There is also some nerve trauma from the surgery as well as from the inflammation. That could explain why you didn't have pain until day 2 when nerves started to react to what had happened. You also could have developed a dry socket but generally the pain of that does not start until day 3 or 4 post op.

It is typical to have limited or uncomfortable/painful opening of your mouth as there is a lot of inflammation in the bone, nerves and muscle structure. Do not try to force your mouth wide open and do not eat solid foods that require a lot of chewing as both of those things will make the pain worse. Stay on a soft food diet until you can comfortably chew without pain. This may take a couple of weeks to be able to do. Which would be very normal.

It's important to keep your teeth and mouth as clean as possible. Rinsing with warm salt water will help keep some bacteria down and will help clean the wound. Avoid mouthwash because the chemicals will irritate the wound and can slow down the healing process.

Regarding your drop in heart rate.... do you have a cardiac or arrhythmia problem normally? Do you have coronary artery disease? Are you on heart or blood thinner medications or even taking aspirin? Here's a link that you can look through to see if any meds you are taking could be causing an adverse reaction to nortriptyline. http://www.drugs.com/drug-interactio...riptyline.html

I hope you do get in to see another oral surgeon soon to evaluate you. Are you on a waiting list?

Bryanna

Originally Posted by Steve turner

Hi BRYANNA
Nice to hear from you,I will try to answer your questions the tooth was not impacted, I had a absis back in July 14 and was given antibiotics, it came back in Feb this year and again given anti Bs,but the dentist referred to hospital as the wisdom tooth showed below the gum,I was sent for a cone beam C T.
The hospital deciided it should come out,I see the surgeon on the morning of the O P for about 4min all she said was ooo you are a bit old to have this done why didn't I have it done when I was younger, my reply was it wasn't a problem then,she said I would be numb for a few days.
I have no molars in front of the tooth,the pain started on day 2 after the O P.
The pain is piercing and stabbing,my chin half of my bottom lip, gum and teeth are numb to touch but are producing lots of discomfort and pain.
My jaw does not hurt but opening my mouth is painfull as it feels like my lips are split where they join each other,pain is constant and it really fills like a dog has got its teeth in my jaw and just pulling at it. I am taking nortriptyline 10 mg but not doing any good, heart rate keeps dropping but ambulance and hospital says it's not connected.i just feel like enough is enough. Hopefully will get a second opinion soon.
Thanks for your concern. Steve

[Cleo]

Under normal extraction, the inferior alveolar nerve is not seen or moved. For you to have been told by the OS to expect numbness, the cone beam must have indicated the roots close to nerve canal... They really don't go into detail how painful that type of numbness can be. It can take a year or longer to get better or just 6 months. How long have you been on nortriptyline? were you suicidal or on the brink of heart failure prior to taking the drug? Has there been any little change for the better since it began 13 weeks ago? There really isn't any quick fix once this happens. The nerve has to heal and it's a very painful process and the older you are the longer it can take.

[Steve turner]

Hi cleo sorry I have not got back to you sooner,but have been really bad with pain it feels like I am going mad. The tablets I am taking are supposed to help heal the nerve,but went to my own dentist yesterday and he said they are also for depression.I ask him to refer me for a second opinion, he said to see the surgeon who done the o p for another cone beam and a referral to another surgeon at different hospital, I suppose I have just got to try and get through this, I just don't know if I am strong enough the way I feel at the moment,I will have to see how it goes and let all you kind people know wish me luck and thank you.

Steve

[Cleo]

Nortriptyline is an anti-depressant and everyone with a nerve problem ends up trying one at some point. It has zero nerve healing power! It changes your brain chemistry If it's not helping you maintain sanity by the first 30 days?? You can be switched to another one that might help. Usually we need more than just anti-depressants with this as time goes on without subsiding symptoms. Your OS should be following your progress with this. How many times have you been back there for follow ups?

[ELna]

Hi Steve,
I just remembered that I was given B-vitamin complex to help with nerve-healing for months! That is supposed to help some. It was a strong one with different types of vitamin b. I'm sorry I didn't remember sooner.

I wish you good news and improvement very soon.

I'm so sorry you're going through this!