What is a Jaw Infection and what does it feel like?
Jaw pain is an annoying disorder that can occur sporadically or recurrently, and in a mild or intense form. It can affect the entire mandibular bone or only a part of it, and in some cases, it can extend to the ear or localize at the level of the dental roots, muscles and the entire temporomandibular joint.
Causes of jaw pain
The reasons that can cause jaw pain are several:
* continuous stresses
* infection
* trauma
* fractures
* joint problems (osteoarthritis, arthritis, dislocations, etc.)
* congenital malformations
* maxillary and mandible bone cancer
As you can see, there are numerous causes that are all very different from each other. For this reason, the first piece of advice we want to give you is to contact a specialist to identify the cause of the pain as soon as possible.
What to do when the jaw hurts?
To effectively combat jaw pain, it is important to evaluate the reasons for the pain together with the specialist in order to identify the diagnostic investigations necessary to intervene correctly.
In case of transient pain, it is possible to relieve the painful sensation with anti-inflammatory drugs and with the application of hot or cold compresses. If the pain is not severe, it can be of great help to relax the muscles of the jaw and jaw with rest or localized massage.
If you suffer from bruxism, you can relieve jaw pain by using the night bite.
Jawbone Infection
Osteomyelitis is the clinical term for inflammation of any bone and is often caused by a bacterium. Osteomyelitis is one of the oldest diseases reported by the scientific community. Defined in 1844 by the French surgeon Auguste Nelaton as an inflammation of the bone caused by an infectious agent, it was very common in the past and difficult to resolve due to the lack of diagnostic and therapeutic tools. The jawbone is not immune to getting infections.
Symptoms
Bone infection usually presents with symptoms common to other inflammatory diseases or infections.
Among these are:
* heat;
* ache;
* swelling;
* functional limitation.
Usually, the first symptom that brings the patient to the doctor is pain associated with the other signs of inflammation.
How is the diagnosis made
The diagnosis is based generally on blood tests to see white blood cell counts. The rise in these cells indicate inflammation related to pain that appeared in your jawbone.
Then follows the radiological investigation which includes x-rays and/or CT scans, which are tests that can be useful for drawing the geography of the infection in the most correct way.
Finally, a microbiological investigation remains. It is fundamental and very important to know the identity of the bacteria responsible for the infection, because in this case we know which antibiotic is best suited to fight it. Additionally, it might be necessary to correctly perform the tissue samples useful for performing a culture examination.
Here then we understand the importance of a close-knit team of specialists, such as orthopedic, radiologist, laboratory analysis, microbiologist, infectious disease specialist who must work together in order to have the best therapeutic results.