Hi charlottefr and marinios: I had my 'last' visit with oral surgeon on March 13-two weeks after the wires came out....Let's see: Jaw is stiff,no biggee; one crown destroyed, one tooth protruding, glue stuck on my teeth has to get sanded off by my regular dentist. An orthodontist visited me at my appointment and basically told me he would only put bottom braces in with top braces....and I should expect to wear them for 2 years....then sometime in that distant future I will need crowns or veneers over the badly abrated(sp?) porcelain of my bottom teeth....
My oral surgeon is very meek and mild mannered. He didn't say anything while the orthodontist was in there. If there had been any indication that I could get some financial assistance to at least get started on braces, I might have agreed to do it. My bite is way off and neither dentist knew why, but were sure braces would fix it....I'm thinking about veneers to cover the sheer ugliness of my bottom 6 front teeth right now....but I haven't made an appointment for a consult...I keep thinking everyone I see is going to tell me the same thing....Need money, braces, then crowns or veneers...
When I'm thinking optimistically, I think about what kind of 2nd job I would like for the next couple years to pay for the mouth repairs....
I would skip it all if I didn't work with people all the time - I am always trying to keep my mouth closed when I smile....I would love to laugh the way I used to with my mouth wide open..but I am too self-conscious...
charlottefr: I would be very interested in hearing about your visit with a neurologist...again I thought if I went to see one, they would tell me wha the oral surgeon did - maybe, maybe not get feeling back and numbness gone...
I take my B12 and 1 Aleve in the morning...I started doing mouth exercises. I described it as feeling like a metal plate was somehow put into my mouth down into my chin and uo intoi my lower lip...It's hard, but I've bumped it and it really hurts - that's when I had the feeling it could crack...Seems weird that if a nerve is damaged, it would feel hypersensitive?!
I've been really busy at work and making up time I miss each week for appointments, but will check in before the end of the week....Thanks for sharing your good and bad...It does help to know other people are dealing with the same issues as me. I also have to be thankful for the otherwise good health I'm experiencing...and I can eat solid food again!!Bye
hi there,
hoping one of you can help me....as I'm reading all your comments here.
My mom just had surgery to remove a lower wisdom tooth, two days ago. She was handed a paper "afterwards" that had all the details, one of them being the possibility of this "numbness". Right now she is experiencing this numbness, in her lower lip, chin and "tongue". I havent noticed if anyone has mentioned their "tongue" feeling numb? Anyways, please someone tell me that there is a good chance this will go away. My mum has had this doctor pull a tooth before, but not a wisdom tooth, and she's never had a problem. I know if she knew there could be any permanent damage, she would never have gone through it.
It's only been two days, but she's still unable to open her mouth very wide, and she had issues with that to begin with. She already suffers from depression and has alot of stuff going on with the rest of her health. We did not need another problem like this, we thought it was just getting a tooth pulled out and that was that!
Is there light at the end of this tunnel and how long will it take to get there?
Looking for some advice please....
thanks, Carsam
Hi carsam, please give your mom a 'hug' for me and tell her that she is not alone in this, ok? It's early after her surgery so a little bit of time will tell whether or not the numbness will last longer. Please keep in touch.
Was it an oral surgeon or a dentist who did the procedure? In either case, they should have pre-warned your mom before extracting the tooth, not after. In other words, the OS or dentist is required to have 'informed consent' from the patient before continuing. My oral surgeon only told me that there would be a slight chance of numbness occuring. I've since learned that this occurs much often than we are led to believe. One of the problems is that these types of injuries are not required, in most cases, to be reported so the statistics are pretty skewed, imo.
I had an injury (in January this year) to my inferior alveolar nerve as a result of the lower left wisdom tooth extraction. I was told before consenting to the surgery that my WT was laying very close to the nerve. I just found out two days ago that the nerve was actually between the roots of the tooth.
It's very early after your mom's extraction, but it's possible that there was some sort of trauma to your mom's lingual or inferior alveolar nerve during the procedure. If her tongue is numb, then that may mean that the lingual nerve was involved. I have no tongue numbness, thank goodness, because my LN was not damaged. There can be numbness of the tongue caused by injections as well. Did the doctor say that there was nerve damage? Also did your mom have local or general anaesthetic?
One of the reasons I had my tooth extracted was because my jaw would not open fully. My dentist and OS thought it was caused by the impacted WT so I had it extracted. I still can't open my jaw more than about 3.5 cm...and will be starting soon on muscle relaxants to try to get it working again. It's possible that it could be a tmj problem. I think that not being able to open your mouth fully after a WT extraction is fairly common though and she might just need a few days for it to come back. Keep track of it..and make sure to keep the doctor informed of her progress.
When will your mom be going back for a followup appointment? If she hasn't made one yet, I suggest that she has one next week or earlier if she feels that she needs one. Ask her to keep a journal..that helps both for keeping track of symptoms and for expressing feelings. What meds were prescribed for pain and inflammation, etc?
I totally understand your mom's feelings of depression...I've been fighting depression too. It's very hard to be sent home with this feeling of numbness and the other feelings/symptoms as well. Yes, there is definitely a 'light at the end of the tunnel'...but, it seems that people heal from these injuries at different rates. It is possible that your mom will start to regain feeling in just a few days..but it is also possible that it might take longer. There are things you can do to help relieve the situation though no matter how long it takes for the numbness to go away. Anyway, I wish her the best...and I'm glad you're there for her!
Hi Charlotte,
Thanks so much for your kind response.
It was an oral surgeon who did the procedure, and no, she was not warned at all of any lasting aftereffects of this surgery. She had a general anesthetic.
Today is Day 5 after the surgery, she is still in alot of pain. Still has the numbness in her tongue, she said the tip, underneath, and down the right side.
She did get to see the surgeon today, he gave her different antibiotics and anti-inflammatory meds. Told her to come back in one week, and there should be more healing by then. He did check her tongue, to see what she could feel and did say there "could be" some nerve damage. I am hoping and praying for her this will resolve itself without any sort of surgery. Yesterday, she had to take an anti-anxiety pill because she felt she was having a panic attack with it. Probably a combination of the pain, the numbness, all her other health ailments and alot of family stress that's going on. She did not need this right now, not that anyone does, but it would have been more acceptable if she had a heads up. This surgeon is very well known, and has a ton of credentials. I know him myself, and he seems very capable. He did say her "surgery" area was healing very well, so I"m hoping that means things will be okay.
I'm sorry you've had to go through this, I can understand how stressful it is. I hope the muscle relaxants will work for you, I had mentioned that to my mom as well because he said there were a lot of muscles back there. He actually told her to "chew gum" to stimulate the muscles. At this point, she still can barely open her jaw, a problem she had before the surgery, which is now almost worse.
I really hope this will go away.....
Thanks Charlotte for listening....
Carsam
carsam..thank you for the update on your mom...I've been thinking about her. I don't know if you do much research on the computer, but if you do..try to find all the information you can on "lingual nerve injuries" after a wisdom tooth extraction and see if what other people have experienced is similar to what your mother is experiencing right now.
If the oral surgeon thinks this 'could be nerve damage', has he explained what else might be causing the numbness and pain? Has she regained complete feeling in her lip and chin?
Did the oral surgeon suggest or prescribe anything to help your mom cope with the pain that she has right now? My OS prescribed 5 days of pretty strong painkillers after my operation. Also antibiotics and a mouthwash.
Many people with nerve damage have been to neurologists and/or pain management specialists early after their injuries. I went to a neurologist last week and he prescribed a different medication that might help prevent my migraines from occuring. They've been increasing in number and length since my injury. Anyway, I guess what I'm trying to suggest is that the cause of your mom's pain, numbness and discomfort needs to be determined. If necessary, consider getting a second opinion from another oral surgeon.
Please tell your mom that I'm presently taking an anti-depressant which, believe me, I was not happy about when my family doctor prescribed it a few weeks ago. It's not for depression (although I've certainly had problems with that since January!) but apparently it does something to help the nerve if it's been injured. I did seem to start making more progress (healingwise) after starting this medication.
I'm glad that the oral surgeon is making regular appointments with your mom..but I think you need to be firm and ask him straight out if the nerve was damaged or not.
Last edited by charlottefr; 03-25-2008 at 11:46 AM.
Hi Charlotte,
So you are still dealing with this since January? Oh boy, that's discouraging. I'm sorry this is going on so long for you...how awful!
Actually my mom just came off Effexor which is an anti-depressant. I thought she was doing well on them. Right now, she just takes Lorazepam, which calms you down. It does help a little, so makes sense what you're saying about the anti-depressant helping also. He gave her Tylenol with Codeine, and also antibiotics. But she called him today and asked if she could "not" take the antibiotics. She has an extremely sensitive stomach and cant tolerate alot of meds. (years of anti-inflammatory pills for her arthritis caused that). He said it was okay to not take them, as he saw her yesterday and there was no sign of infection. Right now she is saying that the "roof of her mouth" is even sore. He told her there was a lot of "bruising back there"? Does that sound familiar to you? Also that the more she talks it feels like her tongue is taking up her whole mouth. I feel so bad for her, she has so much going on right now, so many other tests. She had this tooth taken out, solely for the hopes of alleviating some pain in her jaw that no one can figure out where its coming from. The sad part is, that my mom has been through major health issues, surgeries, but the one thing that really gets her down is problems with her teeth. I'm amazed how she can go through radiation easier than problems with her mouth. So I'm hoping and praying this will ease off soon. She has a follow up appointment in just over a week, and a 24 hour pager number for the doctor.
Charlotte, I'm sorry, I'm not sure if you said, did you experience the numbness at all? If so, did it go away?
I really appreciate your time and thoughts...
Carsam
P.S. My apologies to the original poster, I know this is not my thread. (sorry to piggyback, but the topic was exactly the same problem I'm trying to figure out)
hi carsam...I feel so badly for your mom (and you also) and I wish I could help...but it's so hard to even make suggestions until a dental professional gives you a diagnoses. I would strongly suggest that you get a second opinion from other oral surgeons or even from a neurologist. You could make a few phone calls describing your mom's symptoms and try to find a doctor who has dealt with tongue numbness before. Has your mom's OS had other patients who had this happen?
All I know is that there are two nerves that can be damaged during extractions. The nerve that was damaged during my extraction is called the Inferior Alveolar nerve. I have had numbness, etc in my lower left teeth/gums (front and back), and the left side of my lip and my chin since January because of this. I think I've recovered maybe 30 to 40% of the feeling, but I am still in alot of discomfort as I go through the healing process. Thankfully, I have very little pain now outside of the increased migraines and the 'tightness' in my teeth from time to time.
The other nerve is called the lingual nerve. If that is damaged or mistakenly injected, this can result in tongue numbness. Many people do recover from this injury..but it takes time and sometimes they don't regain 100% of their feeling back. I've read that - rarely - some people have unfortunately had both nerves damaged during a procedure and, as a result, they have both numbness in their tongue as well as in their lip, teeth and chin.
After my surgery, the back of my mouth and throat were very sore but I believe that was due to the tube (for general anaesthesia) being down my throat during the operation. It hurt alot to swallow but that went away after about a week or so. I had some pain at the extraction site as well for about a month. I still can't open my mouth fully and the problem with my jaw is still there. Having my wisdom tooth extracted did not 'fix' that.
My OS told me the day after that my wisdom tooth extraction was particularly difficult. I knew from seeing the panoramic x-ray before the operation that my tooth was laying horizontal and close to the nerve. Since I was under general anaesthetic I have no idea what occured during my surgery. My chest was sore and felt bruised for days after which I'm guessing was from him having to push or possibly lean on my chest during the extraction?
Numbness in the mouth is the hardest medical 'condition' that I've had to deal with so far in my life. The most frustrating thing for me is that it is "there" 24 hours a day...I can forget about it only when I'm sleeping. My 'condition' is invisible to other people. The only visible sign is that I have some problem with speaking and pronouncing some words. I can only imagine how frustrating it must be to have this numbness in a tongue.
I absolutely understand how your mom must feel about all this happening after just wanting to fix the problem with her jaw...we are in the same situation in that way...since we both still have jaw problems. It doesn't make sense to me and it doesn't seem fair. I've really learned to take this situation one day at a time..and I've definitely become more 'assertive' while dealing with doctors.
I hope your mom has a better day today...keep us posted on her progress, ok?
....I would skip it all if I didn't work with people all the time - I am always trying to keep my mouth closed when I smile....I would love to laugh the way I used to with my mouth wide open..but I am too self-conscious...
charlottefr: I would be very interested in hearing about your visit with a neurologist...again I thought if I went to see one, they would tell me wha the oral surgeon did - maybe, maybe not get feeling back and numbness gone...
I take my B12 and 1 Aleve in the morning...I started doing mouth exercises. I described it as feeling like a metal plate was somehow put into my mouth down into my chin and uo intoi my lower lip...It's hard, but I've bumped it and it really hurts - that's when I had the feeling it could crack...Seems weird that if a nerve is damaged, it would feel hypersensitive?!
I've been really busy at work and making up time I miss each week for appointments, but will check in before the end of the week....Thanks for sharing your good and bad...It does help to know other people are dealing with the same issues as me. I also have to be thankful for the otherwise good health I'm experiencing...and I can eat solid food again!!Bye
hi revakvi..how's it going? I think about you alot.. Someone on a forum told me once when I said I was self-conscious about my 'altered' smile from the numbness..to just try to keep smiling and to not worry about it. She said that most people don't even notice what I think they do...it made sense and I'm trying to do that. Keep smiling, k?
Hypersensitivity in the chin area from nerve damage is so common. I'm almost 3 months post injury, and there is now just half of my chin that is still tingling and super sensitive. A lady made me a scarf last week..and gave it to me as a gift. I can't wear it. It's made from a special kind of wool and is very 'prickly'..anything touching my chin still sends little shockwaves through it. BUT, the area affected is getting smaller, thank goodness. On Friday, I woke up and a few minutes later realized that I didn't have the feeling that I had a 'small log' in my mouth along my jaw line (that's how it felt with my numb gum). All day long, I kept 'checking' to see if the feeling would come back and it didn't! I was doing all kinds of mouth movements to try to 'find' that feeling again..lol. Anyway, I'm happy to report that it is still not there...so, another small step to recovery!
carsam...how is your mom doing now? Better, I hope!
Last edited by charlottefr; 03-30-2008 at 04:41 AM.
Dear Charlotte,
I hope you are doing well, I have just read your message, and am glad to see it sounds like you are in good spirits. It is very sweet of you to ask about my mom, thank you. As of today, she is still in discomfort, still has the numbness, and still cannot open her jaw very wide. She has another appointment with the oral surgeon next Thursday. I think the pain might be lessening a little, but not the numbness.
Anyways, I wanted to share something with you. I went onto another website, and found a bunch of forums where you could actually ask "doctors" questions. I posted a message in the Oral Surgery section and an oral surgeon responded to me. He has a ton of credentials, and although I know it is just a comment over the internet, and not actually specific to my mom, I found it very encouraging and wanted to share it with you. I asked him about the numbness and the chances of it being permanent. He said it is only permanent in "rare" cases, ie 1%. Most go away in weeks, but some can take months as we know, and potentially "up to" a year. I'm really hopeful about this Charlotte, as I need something to be hopeful about tonight. Have a lot going on, I usually actually post on the Depression and the Alzheimers and Dementia Board, but I'm "board hopping" a little here to help my mom with one of her many ailments.
Anyways, wanted to say hi, and hopefully share some good news with you. I hope and pray it's the truth for my mom, yourself and anyone dealing with this!
Carsam
i can sympathize with you, i had my jaw broke on each side and my chin , i had the 4 screws also, but my bottom lip inside my mouth started forming around the screw heads, and once the screws were found and removed, my inside lip started healing inside the holes, so now my lip is like fused to my gums. i am tryin to find out what i should do, that is my reason for visiting these forums, lookin for soemone who has had the same experience. good luck with you.
I just wanted to post to this forum and say that I've had a similar situation to Charlottefr's. I had my wisdom teeth out Thursday morning and it is now Sunday night. The entire left side of my jaw (the inside part) and the left side of my tongue have been numb since then and do not seem to be improving. My oral surgeon is currently on vacation and is not returning on Tuesday, which is the earliest time I can schedule an appointment.
Under normal circumstances, I would be pretty upset about all this but there are two things that make this especially bad. One is that I opted to have my teeth out and I SPECIFICALLY asked how close they were to my nerves because I was afraid of this happening. The doctor said they were very far away and there was almost no chance of nerve damage. The second reason I am very, very, VERY upset is that I just completed a bachelor's degree is French horn performance, in addition to one in music education. I have not even sent out my first loan payment and already I am fearing that my career may be destroyed.
I will not pretend that I am an amazing virtuoso with a potential symphony career, but this past spring I made about $1500 playing small gigs around the community, which supplements my teacher's income nicely. I NEVER would have gotten the surgery if he had thought for one second that I may have nerve damage. I've been very upset since Friday (the day after the surgery) and I'm glad I read these posts and know that someone else went/is going through this. I just cried for about an hour while reading them though, because I can't imagine living like this for months, or worse...forever. The thought of never being able to play again breaks my heart.
-Chelsey
p.s. I noticed Charlottefr hasn't posted in a few months. If you read this, how are you doing? Did it improve/go away?
Last edited by Chamm1; 05-25-2008 at 04:36 PM.
Reason: Added PS
I just wanted to post to this forum and say that I've had a similar situation to Charlottefr's. I had my wisdom teeth out Thursday morning and it is now Sunday night. The entire left side of my jaw (the inside part) and the left side of my tongue have been numb since then and do not seem to be improving. My oral surgeon is currently on vacation and is not returning on Tuesday, which is the earliest time I can schedule an appointment.
Under normal circumstances, I would be pretty upset about all this but there are two things that make this especially bad. One is that I opted to have my teeth out and I SPECIFICALLY asked how close they were to my nerves because I was afraid of this happening. The doctor said they were very far away and there was almost no chance of nerve damage. The second reason I am very, very, VERY upset is that I just completed a bachelor's degree is French horn performance, in addition to one in music education. I have not even sent out my first loan payment and already I am fearing that my career may be destroyed.
I will not pretend that I am an amazing virtuoso with a potential symphony career, but this past spring I made about $1500 playing small gigs around the community, which supplements my teacher's income nicely. I NEVER would have gotten the surgery if he had thought for one second that I may have nerve damage. I've been very upset since Friday (the day after the surgery) and I'm glad I read these posts and know that someone else went/is going through this. I just cried for about an hour while reading them though, because I can't imagine living like this for months, or worse...forever. The thought of never being able to play again breaks my heart.
-Chelsey
p.s. I noticed Charlottefr hasn't posted in a few months. If you read this, how are you doing? Did it improve/go away?
Hello,
My wisdom teeth were pulled back on January 10, 2008. Since that time, my numbness has been only in my lower chin and lip....After reading some of the steps people had taken (including nerve repair) I decided to "live and let live" for a few months......
Steps I have taken to try to improve my nerve "regrowth" or whatever is a) take vitamin B-12 every day, use hot shower massage on chin area / followed by cold compresses..almost every day and c) exercise my lower chin/lip area by smiling, stretching, moving my mouth around...
Has any of it helped? Not really. Fortunately, my tongue wasn't affected; from what I've read, that's worse.....
Definitely seek out medical help - read other sites for types of doctors to see, treatment to seek. I may still do that, but for now I hardly notice the numbness if I'm busy working. I really notice it when I'm eating (watch for drool) and late afternoons when my (3x) daily Aleve wears off......
Take care and check out other sites too - that's where I've seen Charlottefr recently.
So this brings me to 8 or 9 days after the surgery. Things were feeling good and I was starting to feel normal. HOWEVER, yesterday morning, I was just eating a piece of toast and I suddenly heard (and felt) a loud crack. It was so loud, my g/f in the car next to me, heard it too. At first, I thought I had cracked a tooth or something but feeling around, nothing seemed to be broken. I was suddenly in pain though, probably more pain than anytime after the surgery. If I kept my mouth closed/not moving it wasn't bad but movements in certain directions would create intense pain.
I went to see the surgeon that morning after it happened and he basically said he didn't know what it was but wasn't too worried. I'm not really sure how he can know that without doing an x-ray but that's what he said. This morining it was so painful, I almost had tears coming out of my eyes and I'm back to barely being able to eat anything (because I can't chew). I started taking Vicaden's again today and since early afternoon things have felt MUCH better but I'm not sure if that's just the Vicaden hiding the pain or not.
I'm not really sure what to do at this point I guess. The surgeon said to come back in a couple of days if it didn't feel better so I might go back tomorrow but I'm not sure how much faith I have in him. I'm actually wondering if it's possible that he fractured/cracked part of my jaw during the surgery and it had just started healing but when I started using it more, it cracked!!?? I have no idea, I just know that not knowing is freaking me out . . . .
I had this EXACT same thing happen! What was the result? Did your doctor expain what caused it? What did you have to do to fix it?
I just had my wisdom tooth out yesterday and half my lower jaw and lip is still numb. Seeing as I only had the one tooth I was thinking it was going to be a walk in the park.. apparently not. The surgeon briefly mentioned before the surgery that sometimes with lower wisdom tooth extractions the lips and jaw can remain numb. He said for some people it will last a few weeks and for others months but didnt give any explanation why. I go back for a follow up in a week and if I am still all numb and he just tells me to be patient I think I might lose it!
Re: Wisdom teeth removal, jaw fracture, numbness 
Re: Wisdom teeth removal, jaw fracture, numbness 
Re: Wisdom teeth removal, jaw fracture, numbness 
