Wisdom Teeth

[ExtremelyAnxious]

Doctor: For several weeks now, I have been experiencing a sore throat in an area of my throat on the right side. I have difficulty/pain swallowing occassionally but mostly an itchy/scratchy sensation/feeling. Sometimes I experience pain and swelling on the right side of my mouth. A couple of years ago, my dentist informed me that my wisdom teeth needed to be removed as soon as possible. I have still not had them removed and the far/upper region of my lower right jaw (near/below and the area around my wisdom tooth) is where I occassionally experience pain and swelling.

Could my sore throat have anything to do with the wisdom tooth on the lower portion of the right side of my jaw? Or are the two wholly unrelated?

Additionally, my diet for the past several months has consisted of foods that destroy the teeth (sodas, fries, pizzas, coffees, teas, etc.) and I have acid reflux disease. Thank you for your attention to my concerns.

[Jerome Tsang, DDS]

Do you have any problems with swelling that creates difficulty in breathing as well?  It sounds like your wisdom teeth are giving you problems based upon your dentist's evaluation. I highly recommend getting an oral surgeon to take a look and remove them if necessary.  It is VERY dangerous when there is problems with swallowing and/or breathing associated with dental infections.

[ExtremelyAnxious]

Doctor: thank you for your prompt reply. I have not had any difficulty breathing but I continue to have a strange, tingling sensation almost extending from my right shoulder to my neck and up into my throat. As I mentioned earlier, the wisdom tooth on my lower right side has created swelling of my gums and has been painful from time to time. I also get pain in my head that seems isolated to my right side. I really cannot think of anything else this could be, do you think there could be a connection between my throat/neck/shoulder/wisdom tooth?

[ExtremelyAnxious]

Doctor: one quick addition to my comment above; I have no history of oral or throat cancer in my immediate maternal or paternal families (really no history of cancer at all), but do you think this could be a symptom of a type of cancer? My father's family has serious heart disease and diabetes problems and my two uncles were heavy drinkers. I only drink and smoke in social settings (which is rare) but as I mentioned above, my diet has been poor and exercise non-existent. Additionally, I also feel a slight pain in my underarm area on the right side. I am a 26 year old male.

[ExtremelyAnxious]

Doctor: I apologize, but I wanted to supplement the above comments with the following: for the past few weeks I have also noticed that I have developed a light red/pinkish spot above about two inches above and a little to the left of my right nipple. It is not particularly hard and only feels a little tender when I press on it. Could this be related to my wisdom tooth/teeth? Thank you again for your responses.

[dawn379]

This could be signs of heart problems if your getting pain up your shoulder, neck and jaw.  I heard you get pain in your jaw this way.  You should really go to a cardiologist to monitor your heart!  Especially if heart disease runs in the family!  I wish you the best.

[ExtremelyAnxious]

Hey, thanks for your response. I honestly think I have all of those problems because my diet has been really poor for the past several months and exercise has been non-existent in my life during that same time as well. Plus, I do drink socially quite a bit. I once had such extreme pain in my chest that I thought I was having a heart attack. I visited my ENT this morning and he said I most likely have early symptoms of Acid Reflux Disease. He gave me a list of recommendations on lifestyle changes and I plan on implementing them!