Swollen gums and swollen throat - Dental Health Message Board

tigerstyle · 05-25-2004, 04:04 PM

Hi, I have been flossing on and off for about 2 years now. I am 22. I'll go a month flossing then stop for 1 or 2 months then on and off again. I never have problems except the first week or so when I start my floss cycle (gums get swollen a little then get better after a week).

So I started flossing about 7 weeks ago and haven't had any problems until about a few days ago. My left side gums started to get swollen. I thought no problem, it'll just go away like it always does. Nope. It actually spread and now my front teeth's gums are swollen and the pain is oh so bad. I eat chicken and my gums hurt. And if I press up against my jaw line right beneath my teeth ( the place where you would put your fingers to check your pulse) i feel a sort of pain/discomfort. The jawline pain first appeared on my left side, and now both sides have pain.

I know I have gingivitis. And I know I don't have periodontitis. I have a feeling the gum swelling is not caused by the gingivitis. (note=the gum swelling happened first, then I noticed the pain beneath my jawline)

My last resort is to go to the dentist. I was also thinking about taking antibiotics. What do you think?

ysco · 05-25-2004, 07:26 PM

Firstly, your flossing habits are obviously bad. What's the logic in flossing month on month off?! You should floss daily. In the month you do not floss you significantly increase the likelihood a plaque will form between your teeth followed by tartar formation. During these processes the bacteria excrete toxins which harm the gums and the teeth. This is literally how gum diseases start.

It does sound like you have some type of gum disease or severe inflammation of the gums which I'm not totally sure is caused by gingivitis and not periodontitis (or something else). These two gum diseases can be distinguished easily by a dentist.

You should see a dentist, sooner the better.
Taking antibiotics?!?! That would be a very bad idea. You don't even know what you have, and in any case antibiotics will do more harm than good without prior treatment.

tigerstyle · 05-26-2004, 10:27 AM

1. Is there a way to reverse this if I brush and floss 2 times a day?

kiki lou · 05-26-2004, 12:14 PM

No, there is NO substitute for a professional cleaning and evaluation. It will probably settle down eventually, and you'll think you've fixed the problem. Don't worry tho, it will be back...

tigerstyle · 05-26-2004, 01:00 PM

I have found no gingivitis/periodontitis cases that should indicate my throat should be sore.

This could be related to my wisdom teeth extractions. About 6 months ago I had 4 of my wisdom teeth extracted. Top 2 were simple extractions, but the bottom 2 were impacted. They had to cut my bone to extract one of the bottom wisdom teeth. They also said that it would take 6 months for the bone to heal.

Could it be that my jaw is infected from the wisdom teeth extractions? If so, why would the problem occur 6 months later?

This is my best hypothesis because as noted before, I have been flossing for 7 weeks now with no problems.

I will go to the dentist, but I just want to know as much as the dentist.

One more thing, I am still flossing and brushing twice a day. And it hurts like a MOTHA... and bleeds. Is this doing more harm then good? For some reason, I think the bleeding is helping get the blood circulated and attacking the bacteria.

THANKS!!!