I have a hard lump in my mouth. The location is a bit tricky to describe but it's on the bottom left of my mouth, by the back tooth between my cheek and teeth- on the bone there. It feels like it could be a bony lump possibly. It has no sharp edges. It cannot be seen from the inside or outside just by looking but on feeling it, the contour of the bone on that side is very prominent.

A couple of things to mention are that I often clench my teeth at night, however, the lump does not feel like muscle and is on the bottom on my lower jaw bone. Also, I had an impacted wisdom tooth removed there 6 months ago. I only noticed this bump four months later but possibly it had been there before but was not as painful.

An x ray does not show up anything unusual and it seems to be nothing to do with my teeth in that area which have always been healthy- it seems more a problem with the jawbone. There is no pus.

My dentist suggested it could be a bone reaction from the wisdom teeth removal although that was 6 months ago. He also thought it could be an infection which wasn't showing on the x ray or a type of cyst. He has said he will do a minor surgery operation in a few months.

I am just concerned about the wait since it is quite painful and I do not know how serious the lump is.

My question is whether all cysts would show up on x ray, even cysts on the jaw bone itself, and would extra bone show up? Could this possibly be something more serious?

Many thanks

Hi

The best suggestion I can offer is to get an appointment with an oral surgeon. You're obviously concerned, and "a few months" seems like too long a wait. Is he aware of the pain that you're having?

You might also want to ask about getting a mouth guard to wear at night.

I'm sorry I couldn't answer your questions. Dr Joshi would be the best person to answer your technical questions.

Please let us know how things turn out for you.

Julia

Hello floral

A bone reaction following the wisdom tooth surgery could cause a hard lump in the bone but this would not be painful by itself unless repeatedly pressed upon.. are you pressing it and causing pain? It would not be growing bigger.

An x-ray would show up a cyst.

I suggest that you get a second opinion from your local hospital Maxillofacial Unit if it is hurting.

Best wishes

Vinod

Many thanks for your very quick replies.

I did ask the hospital for a second opinion and was told the same thing: that is could be extra bone growing or an infection or cyst or something else, and that the earliest appointment for an operation is in August.

If this is a bone reaction, could I still have a lump 6 months after the wisdom teeth removal? I haven't been pressing on it particularly, other than to check to see whether it is still there or has changed.

In trying to work out what this is, I read about cavitations. I was wondering whether this is a possibility, and if so, whether this would be easy to treat?

Finally, do you think it is likely to be something more serious? And if it was any of these things suggested, would waiting 2 months for the operation make a big difference?

Many thanks for all your help - it is very much appreciated.

quote:

If this is a bone reaction, could I still have a lump 6 months after the wisdom teeth removal?

YES

quote:

In trying to work out what this is, I read about cavitations. I was wondering whether this is a possibility, and if so, whether this would be easy to treat?

No evidence for this!

quote:

inally, do you think it is likely to be something more serious? And if it was any of these things suggested, would waiting 2 months for the operation make a big difference?

NO, NO

Thank you very much for your prompt reply and help - it is greatly appreciated.
Many thanks