Husband's neck pain

Posted By Suzanne on October 28, 1998 at 09:47:12:







My husband is 48 years old and has high blood pressure.  His blood pressure is controlled by medicine (Ziac).  Every once in a while, he complains about a pain on the left side of his neck running between his ear and the bottom of his jaw.  This is so painful at times that he cannot sleep.  He has told his doctor about this and he seems unconcerned.  He has no other symptoms-no shortness of breath, chest pains, or numbness.  I do not know much about the arteries, but I think there is one located right where my husband is complaining of the pain.  A friend of ours' mother had this artery "cleaned out".  Last night, he was awake and in pain.  I am very concerned that this is a sign of something that may eventually lead to a heart attack or stoke.  Can you shed any light on this?  What could this pain possibly be?  What steps/tests does he need to have rule out  that this is not life-threatening?
Thank you so much