Swollen cheek and mild pain

Hi,

I'm not sure that this is even a dental issue, but don't know where else to post it.

I woke up this morning with some slight swelling of my left cheek, I'd say halfway between my back teeth and my ear.  At first I thought I had just slept on that side of my face wrong, but the swelling got worse during the day and is now quite visible and mildly painful.  I took 600 mg of Ibuprofen and this reduced the swelling somewhat.

The weird thing is the swelling and pain does not seem to be connected to any issue with my teeth.  Both start about a quarter to half inch behind my teeth, toward my ear (it stops about a half inch from my ear as well).

I have also had no problems with hot or cold liquids or salt water on my teeth on that side of my mouth.  All three only causes mild irritation, which is normal for me.

Any ideas what this could be?  Might it be an abscess of some sort?

Thanks.

Eric

[Jerome Tsang, DDS]

Its possible it may be an abscess.  When was your last dental checkup?  Maybe your wisdom tooth is infected if you haven't removed them yet.

[McMurphy510]

Thanks Doctor Tsang,

It has been about 6 months since my last dental checkup.  My wisdom teeth have all been removed.

Eric

[Jerome Tsang, DDS]

Ya, I would recommend getting it checked out.  It may be something simple since you are getting routine dental care.  I once had a patient who had popcorn stuck between his teeth and it swelled up.  Once I took it out, everything went back to normal.  Have your dentist take a look and see whats going on.