8 weeks post op - New pain and mild swelling
 

Hi everyone!

I've been lurking through this forum for some weeks now and decided to make an account and ask a question pertaining to my specific situation.

I'm a 21 y/o female, healthy as a horse. So over 8 weeks ago, I got #32 extracted (bottom right wisdom tooth).

The first few weeks, I had nothing but issues. I got an infection, went to the ER 3 times. Frequented my dentist's office so much. Crazy amounts of pain. Finally started to feel better. There's so much to the story, but I want to keep it brief if I can.

Here I am in week 8, feeling 95% back to myself. A couple days ago, I woke up at 5:30am to an achey, sore feeling in my right jaw. The pain was a 4-5/10. I have not felt pain in a long time. I have these little weird feelings pretty often, but no pain, so this is new. That same morning, I began to have symptoms of a cold. Sneezing, congestion, stuffy nose, sore throat, headache, and all the while this sore pressure in my jaw. I got up and looked in the mirror and saw the slightest bit of swelling in my right jaw.

2 days later, here I am. My cold symptoms are better. I am getting a COVID-19 test tomorrow, hopefully. Anyway, my jaw feels so sore and I discovered on the inner part of my gums on my right side (the side facing my tongue) that there was some discoloration there. The gums beneath my back 2 molars have darkened to a purple/blackish color and is very very sore.

I'm so frustrated. Please help. What is this discoloration? Why am I still dealing with pain and discomfort over 2 months after the extraction. I'll be happy to provide more information if it will help!!!!!!

I tried to keep this brief but detailed. I could go way into more detail if need be.

Welcome capricornlibragori :Wave-Hello: Someone will be along.

Kitt

OP: Sound like you need to discuss with dentist what is going on...the discoloration issue for starters.

I'm an older soul around here and have gone thru my share of dental work in my life but I have been taking supplements to keep the remaining dental in my mouth working good. Grape Seed Extract has been a saviour for my gums for one big thing. So you might store this away for good overall health in your life...

Then I have a 10+ yr molar issue which I live with and didn't want to go thru dental work and expense and when I feel a little pain, I drop some myrrh tincture around the area. You could do some research on the myrrh for your pain.

Sorry you are having a tough time, but dental issues can ruin your days....

Coming from an old soul too, good to keep sugar and carbs low thru your life, you won't need a dentist as much....too bad I didn't hear these words years ago....

Hi Kitt! Thanks for the welcome!

Hi Caroline, thank you for your kindness and advice. I always take heed to older folks' advice. I truly appreciate it.

I just recently noticed the discoloration. I got tested for COVID yesterday and am awaiting the test results. I have a doctor's appointment scheduled with my PCP this Friday as well as the appointment with the oral surgeon, though that's later in the day. It all depends on my COVID results though. I spoke with someone at the oral surgeon's office. She won't be in til Friday, but I wanted to document my new-ish symptoms.

Hi capricornlibragorl,

I can only speak from my own experience but years ago I had my 2 lower wisdom teeth pulled. Everything seemed fine afterwards, I had the stitches out (assuming they got them all) but then I began having pain in one of the areas.

A trip back to the oral surgeon revealed that there were one or two stitches they'd missed. They may have been concealed by the swollen gum tissue at the time and popped out later.

When they removed those stitches, the problem was solved.

I hope your problem can be solved easily too.

Hi agate,

They used dissolvable stitches on me. This pain I'm experiencing is very sudden. I have had weird feelings in my jaw, as if something is in there, since the 2nd week post-op. I got used to this feeling. It never went away; it just stopped being bothersome to me. Then suddenly, I wake up in pain.

I am hoping hoping hoping it will go away or I can get some relief and answers.

Update
 

Here's an update.

Since last Thursday, I have had tremendous nerve pain along my right jaw, into my ears, and along all of my back teeth on my right side, upper and lower. I have an icy-hot, burning, tingling sensation there. Last night when I went to sleep, I woke up shortly afterward and it felt like someone was pouring acid into both of my ears and it was filling up my head. Like my brain was being liquified.

Sorry to be so graphic. That is truly what it felt like. I have been doing research on my symptoms for the past few days and it sounds like I may have Trigeminal Neuralgia. I am seeing my PCP and OS on Friday. My COVID test results came back negative. So that's a relief. It was probably just a head cold. I feel better in regards to those symptoms. I am just left with some very mild congestion.

I hope to get in to see my dentist before Friday. I want them to do some x-rays on me and keep them for my records. This is really beginning to have a grim outlook.

Today, as I type this, I feel a bit better. Some tingling on my right side jaw and teeth. I make a conscious effort to keep my jaw relaxed so that my teeth do not touch. I am terrified of the pain coming back. It happens pretty randomly.

Another bit from my experience: Sometimes there can be a missed bit of tooth still in your jaw.

The oral surgeon who pulled my wisdom teeth was probably an excellent doctor. But even a good surgeon can miss something now and then.

Many years after the wisdom teeth were out I noticed an odd bony lump in the back of my mouth. More years went by, and one dentist called it a "condensing osteoma." Since it wasn't causing me pain, life went on.

Then I had to have the back molar on that side pulled, and the dentist doing the extraction found that it was a bit of wisdom tooth that had been causing that bony growth. She took it out right then, and I finally got rid of the bony lump, which was getting in the way of swallowing.

So when you see the oral surgeon, you might want to mention this as a possibility--and if any tooth was left, you'll be spared what happened to me because bone forms around those bits as time goes by, apparently.

I will bring this up to the oral surgeon. A dentist performed my extraction and I don't think he should have, to be honest. They performed x-rays on me when I first went to the OS to check for any root fragments or bits left behind. They saw nothing.