I am really becoming convinced that my throbbing mouth is caused by the above. For a year on & off I have periods of extreme throbbing in what I was calling my gums and my teeth but it's really the jaws as well.
I had that sore tooth early in the week and went to the dentist. I was also getting the referred pain or throbbing in different areas as well-but 1 tooth was killing me!
He xrayed it and examined it. He said it sounds like the tooth is dying and needs a root canal but the xray and exam does not support it. he cleaned it up and said lets wait and see.
Well I tried to eat soft foods and give that tooth a rest and it worked pretty good. Then I ate a sandwich and I started getting the throb in my back teeth/jaw so bad I had to take percocet and continuously use orajel. The a lump formed behind the first sore tooth that really was feeling quite better....
I called the dentist and he made me come in. He says the lump is an infection. He xrayed the tooth again- still fine. He poked open the lump9after numbing me) and said really no pus- it's like cellulitis (?) Then my back teeth/jaw started throbbing. He says it's in no way related to the sore front tooth or the lump.... He put me on an antibiotic for 10 days.
I asked my RD if this could be RA and he told me no- go see your dentist. So now I have and he says I have absolutely no dental issues. I had my whole mouth xrayed and a good visual exam.
I have an appt. with the RD next Thursday and I'm going to bring it up again. I guess it doesn't matter whether it is or it isn't...there's nothing you can do for it if it is anyway.
I do have RA in the jaw. RD is very concerned about it. But hey--I have lost weight. He said that when I had the arthrocentesis done over Thanksgiving the Oral Surgeon removed quite a bit of fluid from around both joints. My left side has "severe" deterioriation and the right one is quickly following. There is obvious swelling just by looking. The surgeon wants to get back in and try to do some joint repair but he says he can't until the RA is under control. This is actually one of the reasons the RD is pushing Rituxan so hard. He and the OS had a phone conversation while I was getting my Orencia.
Point is: yes-RA can affect the jaw. Yes, things can be done about it. Just like any other joint. Now, RD and OS both said that the jaw is often one of the last to be really affected. They did say that many pain patients have jaw issues due to clenching and grinding teeth at night. This is one reason why so many people have mouthguards.
Talk to your dr. Maybe it is a tooth but you have two very busy joints that can have issues.
I think my RA effects my jaw too. It's stiff and a little inflamed on both sides. I have nothing wrong with my teeth...thank goodness at least great teeth runs in the family. The point is, like rockyd said, RA can affect the jaw too. I think of it this way. If it's a joint, RA can assault it. Come to think of it, if there's connective tissue there it can be affected too. There are small bones and connective tissue in your ears too. When I flare, mine almost always have some fluid on them but show no signs of infection.
There is also a small joint in your larynx that can be affected by RA. This is responsible for the hoarse voice some get while flaring too. Mine has been like this for months which is really frustrating since I love to sing and can't now.
I have it in my jaw also, my wasn't tooth pain though it was by my ear. My dentist said that the pain could be anywhere on the affected side. Don't know if that helps. Did you tell your dentist you have ra, I know it is a stupid question but I never thought to inform mine until after the fact.Hi Wantobe!
I just went through the same thing a few weeks ago. It was a Friday of course when it started. the weather was changing from warm to cold and rainy and my elbows, hands and my jaws (which don't usually ache) were really achey. That night my teeth started to hurt soooooo bad. The pain was all over the place and I could not tell where it was coming from. I thought I had a tooth ache on top of all the usual. The pain was excrutiating. The only thing that helped was heat on my jaws and vicoden. I went to the dentist that Monday, thinking I was in for a root canal and had a full set of xrays. My teeth were fine too. The dentist said that the pain in my teeth was coming from my jaw. I asked him if it could be ra related and he said yes but it could be from grinding my teeth at night, like Becky mentioned. I could not afford to get the guard he suggested (0) so I have been eating a soft diet, resting my jaw and using heat and motrin. It is much better at the moment. Once my teeth stopped hurting the pain was all back in my jaws. They would start to throb anytime I would chew or talk. I'm not sure why they have settled down but I am so happy that they have.
Just wanted to say, I feel your pain
Pam
I've had soreness.. especially AFTER seeing the dentist.. holding it open like that bothers me.. and lucky me! I have sjogrens which may or may not affect my teeth... which would mean MORE dental appointments..
it's a vicious circle........
I hope you feel better, wantto
WTB, I haven't had any trouble with my jaw, but I know quite a few here who do. It sounds really painful. Whatever your's turns out to be, I hope you don't have to suffer much longer. I guess it would be best if it's an infection? Then at least it will go away for good.Thanks all-
Well another day and more pain. I have had 3 doses of antibiotics. He did say the pain other than the front tooth is not related at all to the infection so don't expect them to do anything for that.
My dentist does know I have RA. I was right in the middle of a some dental work when I initially flared. I have been going to him for 20 years and we have built a friendship so he was very upset to see me so ill and unkempt. We discussed it yesterday too and he is thinking it could be related. he also said sometimes pain we have in other areas will migrate to the mouth.
Well I guess I'll continue to keep the orajel handy(new flavor- tropical and not unpleasant at all!) Also my bottle of percocets but I'm a little worried about taking them so often. Right now I have an aching and throbbing from my front tooth all the way back but it's not strong enough to warrant a percocet. It's an itching kind of throbbing. Does that make sense?
I have found that heat and pressure helps too....
I had what I figured was TMD (temporo-mandibular disorder) which is a fancy way of saying your jaw joints hurt like hell. It would come and go for years before I was diagnosed with RA. Can barely open my mouth at times, and it's currently excruciating in the morning. I wear bite guards every night, one on top and one on bottom. Want, your dentist should be able to make you a bite guard for top OR bottom (usually a person just wears one) for a lot less than four hundred bucks. You can buy them in the grocery store for about thirty. That would be worth a try! I told my new rheumy yesterday about my continuing jaw pain, which is on both sides now after only being on one for years, and asked if I should see a dentist. He said to continue on the methotrexate and prednisone (which I just started) and give it three months, that this treatment may very well help, that RA often affects the jaw. Of course if it's agonizing, see a dentist right away. I'm in a holding pattern now where I can stand it. Good luck, Want, I hope you get relief. Mine responded better to cold, you might try that.wantto...
do you think you are flaring in the jaw alone?
I am sorry you're suffering like this....
'
Yikes, never thought of the jaw...... how painful that must be.
Wondering out loud.....could a person get a cortisone shot in the jaw?Yes. I have had several. But, like the other joints, each shot does a bit of damage at the same time. In my case, the oral surgeon feels that there is just not enough joint left of the left side to give another shot.
Seeing a regular dentist is the first step but you will have to be referred to a specialist to get any real ra jaw treatment. You should get special xrays at that appointment. If he thinks it warrants it-the dr. should then order an MRI of the jaw joints. This will be able to show the fluid and muscle inflammation that can occur around the jaw. Over time, the entire shape of your jaw can change. My lower jaw has become thicker-apparantly this is due to the stress caused by the weak joint. It is not noticiable-just visible on an xray.
Hopefully, your pain is caused by grinding/clenching your teeth. Word of caution-be careful with mouthguards. The wrong fit can cause way more issues than you had to begin with. One reason they tend to get expensive is that they are made of a stronger material and then the dentist stacks the thickness in various areas to try and relieve pressure. A store bought guard might be good to start with-especially if you are not having great discomfort. But, a professionally made one is designed to retrain your jaw and muscles to realign into the best position for you.
You can also do PT for the jaw. Ultrasound is great for breaking up fluid and inflammation.
Can you all tell that this has been a major flare area for me :)
I had a root canal a couple of months ago, I was given vicoden. I tell you the truth I took one and all it did was make me lightheaded did nothing for the pain. took 800mg Ibuprofen I got relief... Maybe cause anti-inflam. hope you're feeling better.WTB,
I've had a flare in my jaw before, but it was in the hinge, not the jaw itself. It was very painful to open my mouth, but I never felt like it was a tooth. It was obvious to me it was the hinge of the jaw - right by the ear.
What I'm concerned about is the fact your dentist thinks it looks like cellulitis. From what I read when I Googled "cellulitis" and "gum", it appears to be a rapidly spreading bacterial infection that can get rather serious in immune compromised individuals. My research showed that the antibiotics should make it feel better in just a few days.
If you aren't better in a few days, don't let this go.
Cellulitis is a severe, rapidly-spreading bacterial infection that results from an uncontrolled infection in the gums, tooth pulp or root end (apex). It normally starts close to the source of the original infection, and quickly spreads to involve large areas of the face and neck. It is characterized by swelling, redness, heat and pain. Symptoms of cellulitis include a painful, tender swelling that increases in size as the infection spreads, and a stretched, shiny appearance to the skin. Overall, you may have a fever, fatigue and muscle aches, swollen lymph glands in the neck, nausea and vomiting, joint stiffness, and hair loss at the affected area.
Cellulitis can be difficult to treat, and may require hospitalization. The focus of the treatment is to stop the infection's spread, establish drainage, and prevent the development of complications. It is important that we identify the type of bacteria causing the infection. After this has been done, we can usually cure cellulitis after 7-10 days of treatment, except in those with suppressed immune systems.
Wow you sound like me. My teeth are actually not throbbing at the moment. I have had three teeth removed over a one year time period. Have you seen an oral surgen? They have a different sort of exray. I had a tooth that needed pulled and the dentist kept saying it was fine. He had filled it when it should have been pulled. So many different things can be going on. I have RA in my jaw, I have Sjorgrens so my teeth and sinuses are always prone to infection. Sinuses can make your teeth throb also. I hate it. It hurts. But for me i had to quit taking the generic form of Plaquinil. It made my teeth throb even more. But that is because my sinuses could not tollerate the medicine. My teeth did throb before i took the the hydroxychlor but it made it alot worse. And yes i get jaw swelling. But my sinuses are shot. I see the ENT once a week at the moment.
Theories that i have. Prednisone gets rid of imflamation. I wonder if i have infections sometimes in my teeth and it does not show up on exray till it gets really bad. Because i complain for months before the exrays support what i am complaining about. I would suggest an Oral surgen and an ENT If you wish to feel better. Someone said they get shots in there jaw twice a year for relief. What medicine are you taking?
My dentist made my guards, and charged 0 to make the cast of my upper and lower teeth, and for the guard itself. I chew through them regularly, they either get holes in them or they become as hard as iron from the pressure, and it costs me another fifty bucks. 0 is an awful lot of money for a bite guard.Most will start with a cheaper guard. My first one was probably about . The one I have now was 0. It has taken a number of years to progress to that guard. Also, I wouldn't accept such an expensive therapy from a regular dentist. Just like you wouldn't get RA meds from your primary care. Well here I am again. The lump is no smaller today but the pain has not be so great that I have to take anything stronger then Extra Strength Tylenol. I don't have any visible swelling. I know I don't grind my teeth at night because the dentist would see evidence but I'm not sure I don't clench them. I am a tense person so it wouldn't surprise me. I'll talk to my dentist about that possibility.
I appreciate everyone's responses and it's good to know I'm not the only one who suffers with this. Rocckyd I remember when you were going through the jaw trouble and thankfully I don't think I am anywhere in near as bad shape as you were!
Kweenb! Thanks for watching my back! Man- I didn't even think to google cellulitis! I associated the word with cellulite and thought it was just a fatty lump! I have not been feeling well and do have swollen lymph glands in my neck although they are not very large. I haven't taken my temp but I feel feverish.
I'm wondering how I could have gotten this. My dentist is very hygenic but it appears to be where I got a lidocain injection...I remember I noticed first the lump felt fleshy then turned hard and I mentioned that to him. I told him I thought it might have just been a site reaction but he said no it was definitely an infection.
He said he'd call me at work Monday to see how I am faring. I'm going to have to ask him some questions about cellulitis. I wonder if he's aware that it can be more comprimising for me?
Rocckyd, how did you find a dentist who specializes in TMD? A referral from your regular dentist? I had no idea there were bite guards that cost that much, and if they work well enough to be worth the money, I WANT ONE.
I had a referral from my regular dentist. I managed to luck out and have a great oral surgeon. Of course, there are bad ones out there as well. My RD is happy with my OS too, but wants me to have a consult with a dr. at Duke as well. We'll see.
RaFree-cellulitis is serious stuff. If you don't hear from the dentist by lunch, give him a call. That way you should be able to talk to him before the end of the day.
I have RA in my jaw as well. Had TMD forever (maybe RA, but I had functional pain, not swelling). Just my jaw had a huge flare in October. I realized when I got awful ear pain then that the mild ear pain I'd had when I'd sleep on my right side was related to the inflammation and the RA.
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