UPDATE: Medical question + 20" of snow = help!

[Garga]

Update:

I took a picture of the swelling the night I wrote this thread, as recommended, and it looked really scary. Swollen, red patch like on a canker, discolored a bit by the tooth...

 

I started in on the peroxide washes and salt water washes right away, every 2 hours or so.

The day after the post when I was steadily doing all the washes, it started to look a LOT better. The swelling had halved. The color was getting lighter. The area around the tooth looked nice and clean.

 

I made sure to have him floss very carefully each day and we're still doing the rinses, these few days later, but the swelling is almost completely gone. The gum looks a nice pink color. I'll keep up the rinses for a bit longer, but I'm confident that the swelling will go completely away. And if not, I don't feel that panicky feeling that something is horribly wrong. We'll go to the dentist next week if it's not gone by Saturday.

 

THANK YOU EVERYONE! I would not have known about saltwater or peroxide washes if I hadn't asked you guys. I can't tell you what a relief this has been to be able to solve this at home in the middle of being snowed in. Thank you!

 

---------

 

 

Original Post:There are 20 inches of snow outside my house. The roads are literally impassable. I live in a tiny town in Pennsylvania where they don't scape the roads too often.

 

My ds10 mentioned the other day that he had a "bruise" on his gum. We were in the middle of something so I said, "Well show it to me later." He didn't mention it again and I forgot about it. I mean, it's just a bruise, so it's not a big deal.

 

Today he called me over, "Mom! What is this?"

 

Back near his molars he has a significant swelling--like the size of another molar sticking off the side of his gum--with a few groupings of yellowish dots on it. It's not a canker sore because those things hurt pretty bad when you try to eat. He has no fever. It's not a throbbing pain.

 

He says it feels sore, like a bruise when it is touched. He's not in terrible pain. Just feels like when you touch a bruise.

 

But this giant swelling (it looks like the size of molar) off the side of his gum is kinda scary. :(

 

And 20 inches of snow! I honestly am not sure if we can physically go anywhere.

 

So there's nothing I can do about it right now, but what the heck do you guys think this is??? If it's some sort of infection I read that I can have him use mouthwash, so we'll do that. But this is going to nag at me until I can get him somewhere which might not be until Monday.

 

ETA: No, I was wrong about the yellow. Why did I think it was yellow? I looked again and there's a reddish patch that looks somewhat like a canker sore does. Yet he doesn't have that canker sore pain. It's just swollen and feels a bit bruised. He doesn't wince or anything when he touches it.

Edited January 26, 2016 by Garga_

[Laura Corin]

gum boil/abscess?  Have a look at some pictures on Google.

[SparklyUnicorn]

Is this near an adult tooth or baby tooth?

 

 

[SparklyUnicorn]

With my younger kid the two front adult teeth started to stick out before the baby teeth fell out.  It looked crazy as heck.  When I called they just said that if it the teeth didn't come out within a couple of weeks to call the back.  The did come out.  The teeth coming in were rather crooked and crazy looking for a bit, but now they have settled into place.  Apparently this is not totally uncommon.  They instructed me on how to pull the teeth out, but I didn't do that because..yuck...no thank you. 

 

So, just saying it could be something like that. 

 

 

Edited January 23, 2016 by SparklyUnicorn

[Pink and Green Mom]

I would take a picture (if you can) and then call the dentist's office.  Ours gives out an after hours emergency number, so it may be worth a try to see if you can reach the dentist.

[EKS]

Aren't there twelve year molars? Could it be that?

[Garga]

Is this near an adult tooth or baby tooth?

I think it's a baby tooth? I have kept all his teeth that's he's lost and there are 2 molars that were extracted and 2 other molars that fell out on their own. When I look at the size of the ones that are out, I think the one in his mouth is still a small one.

 

The lump isn't hard. It feels just like a gum should feel.

[athomeontheprairie]

Another vote for a picture and calling the emergency number for the dentist

[Garga]

If it's like the one my son had recently, near a baby tooth, it went down after swishing peroxide a couple of times. I don't know what it was, and I don't remedying having any pain with it.

Was this over the course of a few days of swishing? How often? I'll start there. In fact I already have, he just swished for a minute.

[StephanieZ]

Could it be a misplaced tooth growing in a weird place? 

 

If you can call your dentist and get hold of an emergency number, and they'd agree to look at a photo via text, I'd absolutely do that. Take several pictures, as good as you can get. Also, take his temperature, for real, just so you can be sure you are reporting that correctly to the dentist. You can also call your pediatrician to see if you can talk to an actual doctor there. 

 

I'd do warm salt water rinses every few hours (5 min or so) because it won't hurt and might help.

 

I'd also do an anti-inflammatory (Advil, Aleve, etc.) on a schedule until he gets seen.

 

If he spikes a fever, and you can't get any phone-reassurance from doctor or dentist, then, and I couldn't find someone with a really sturdy 4WD and/or plow to drive you to the ER, I'd call 911 and try to get them to take your kid to the ER. (Obviously, letting them know the degree of emergency, so if they are slammed with life threatening emergencies, they can skip yours .. . ) That's me, though, and I am a paranoid freak. 

 

 

[xixstar]

Well the good news is it doesn't sound like it is super urgent. So i would imagine that getting in by Wednesday will be fine. I would say Monday but if you're in the storm I am, Monday is highly unlikely right now.

 

Good in that unless I read wrong, there is no pain involved.

Edited January 24, 2016 by xixstar

[West Coast Mom]

If he's due for a new tooth, it could be an eruption cyst. Look up images and see if it matches what's going on in his mouth.

[Guest]

I had an absess once when I was a kid, but there was no ignoring that bad boy because I was in agony.

[Pawz4me]

DH had a swelling on his gum a few years ago.  It went on and on.  I think he found it more irritating than painful.  Turns out it was an infection.  A course of antibiotics took care of it.

 

I agree with having him swish regularly with warm salt water and take an anti-inflammatory.  Neither of those will hurt anything, and if it is an infection they may be enough to keep it under control until the roads are clear.

Edited January 24, 2016 by Pawz4me

[Melissa in Australia]

I have had something like that a few times over my life. I think a couple of times it was an abscess, but those were painful ( when I was a child).

 

 A few years back I had something a bit like that but it wasn't so painful, more an annoyance pain. it turned out it was a little bit of popcorn shell that had slipped between my tooth and gum.

[creekland]

I wouldn't be heading out for that - esp if it isn't really painful to him.  Tomorrow some of the roads should be clear.  Monday most should be and places ought to be open again.  Without a bit of pain or lethargy and given these conditions... home remedies are what I'd be doing.

 

Best wishes to both of you!

[Guest]

I doubt if it's an abscess, because those are agonizingly painful.

 

He would tell you if he needed something like clove oil, anbesol, or ibuprofen.

 

You could use a teabag as a compress and/or have him swish with warm salt water just to make sure. I am not comfortable giving out DIY dental advice under normal circumstances, but I don't think you should get in the car and if I were you, it would make me feel better to know that I was doing everything I could.

 

Oil pulling, peroxide, and all the other controversial stuff you might find on the internet just aren't worth the stress of worrying if you are doing more harm than good.

[UCF612]

I had an absess last year. It was AWFUL pain. My gum did swell out quite a bit and within few days my whole jaw/face was swollen like I had a baseball in my cheek. I will say that my pain started with a mild throb, went away for a week and then returned full force. I hope for his sake it isn't an absess!

[Garga]

I had an absess once when I was a kid, but there was no ignoring that bad boy because I was in agony.

I have had something like that a few times over my life. I think a couple of times it was an abscess, but those were painful ( when I was a child).

 

 A few years back I had something a bit like that but it wasn't so painful, more an annoyance pain. it turned out it was a little bit of popcorn shell that had slipped between my tooth and gum.

I had an absess last year. It was AWFUL pain. My gum did swell out quite a bit and within few days my whole jaw/face was swollen like I had a baseball in my cheek. I will say that my pain started with a mild throb, went away for a week and then returned full force. I hope for his sake it isn't an absess!

Well, if it turns out it's an abscess and he wakes up in the middle of the night in terrible, terrible pain...what do I do? Before you all head to bed, tell me what helped keep the pain down? It doesn't sound like this is something you go to the ER for. It sounds like you call the dentist as soon as they're open and go in, right? But in the meanwhile, what helped with the pain for you?

[gardenmom5]

can you see anything?  any swelling? discoloration?    it could be an infection inside the gum itself. 

 

My daughter had an abscess, but it was visible from the outside.  (no fever.)  she had to have a root canal.  (at four.)

 

at this point, the most you could probably do is given him pain killers as needed.  if you have an emergency dental line, call and ask.

 

I feel your pain about being stuck and not being able to drive.  we had that in a previous storm.  not even 4WD with chains got off our hill the first couple days or so.

[AndyJoy]

If it does end up being an abscess, applying a warm, damp tea bag is a home remedy that helps with the pain temporarily.

[EmseB]

If it's an abscess you need to watch for fever, and if there's a fever it is something that needs attention as quick as possible.

 

In your shoes at this point I'd be doing the peroxide swishing and monitoring very closely.

[Melissa in Australia]

When I was a child the only thing we did was swish salt water. We did this for any mouth abscess.

[Katy]

Well, if it turns out it's an abscess and he wakes up in the middle of the night in terrible, terrible pain...what do I do? Before you all head to bed, tell me what helped keep the pain down? It doesn't sound like this is something you go to the ER for. It sounds like you call the dentist as soon as they're open and go in, right? But in the meanwhile, what helped with the pain for you?

 

He won't because if he was going to, he would already have a dull toothache.  Especially when you press on it.  It's probably just an adult tooth coming in funny.

 

Normally when you need a root canal you call the dentist, they schedule an appointment for two weeks out, and in the mean time they call in a prescription for antibiotics and vicodin.  It's an emergency because teeth are so close to the brain that if untreated, sepsis can set in.  But they prefer antibiotics to immediate treatment because the pH of the infection defeats the numbing medication, so they prefer to wait until the infection is cleared before treating the exposed nerve itself.

 

An oral gel with a numbing agent can help if you have that, or a teething cream, or clove essential oil. Swishing with listerine can sometimes help too.  And perhaps something like hard liquor, but I can't see myself giving it to a child.

[Starr]

We find ibuprofen works well for pain. Ds's orthodontist would give him 3 pills, 600 mg. The bottle says 2 pills. 

[TKDmom]

My dd had 2 abscesses. They were above baby teeth that had been previously filled. They just looked like a big, squishy bump and weren't painful. The dentist told us that they aren't painful until they've progressed significantly more.

He sent me to an oral surgeon to have tooth pulled, but wasn't particularly urgent. He said as long as we got it done in a month or so...

I'd definitely look it up, but unless he's in a lot of pain, it wouldn't be an emergency to brave snowy roads for.

 

 

Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

[Ausmumof3]

Gargle with salt water if you can that will help if it's some kind of infection.

[Chris in VA]

I had an abcess/infection. I flossed deeply and rinsed, and then, more out of curiosity than anything, I pressed hard on it.

TMI WARNING

I could feel it squishing and "popping" like a zit, only it felt like it was internally. It must have squirted somewhere in the mouth, but I could not see or taste any pus.

 

That will prob be the grossest thing you read tonight.

Edited January 24, 2016 by Chris in VA

[Alice]

I would bet it's his 12 year old molars coming in. They can look really swollen and bruised. It could also be a ranula, but those arise from the floor of the mouth so if it's truly of his gum it's not that. Those are benign also. 

 

Abscesses are usually really painful so if he has no fever and is not in a lot of pain I think you are probably ok to wait it out. 

[StephanieZ]

Well, if it turns out it's an abscess and he wakes up in the middle of the night in terrible, terrible pain...what do I do? Before you all head to bed, tell me what helped keep the pain down? It doesn't sound like this is something you go to the ER for. It sounds like you call the dentist as soon as they're open and go in, right? But in the meanwhile, what helped with the pain for you?

 

For me, when I had a tooth root abscess, the pain ebbed and flowed until it was fixed. It wasn't as horrible as one would imagine, probably because we caught it early. What *I* did was ACT mouthwash rinses, warm salt water rinses, NSAIDs, and then, when I had 36-48 hrs more to go until the endodontist appointment, I hit up the leftover Lortab from DH's elective surgery 6 years ago. It hurt BAD. I would never give a narcotic to a child unless it was prescribed, though. If you can get hold of emergency service for your pediatrician or dentist, they might be able to give you better lay-person advice. TBH, if it were me in that situation, I would probably administer a low dose of whatever narcotic I had on hand if I felt confident in the correct dosage, ideally with a med they had been prescribed previously. (I.e., a narcotic cough syrup that knocks them out.) 

 

If I didn't have a good narcotic that might help alleviate pain and help them rest, I'd at least give Benadryl as a sleep aid and maximum doses of Aleve (if I had it) or ibuprofen if I didn't have Aleve. And warm salt water rinses every couple hours. And a heating pad. 

[creekland]

How'd your night go?

[Guest]

Also wondering how your son is doing today. I'm sorry I didn't see your question last night before bed. I don't remember what was done for the pain when I had an abcess, because it was a loooooong time ago. I think I was around eight years old. :) So whatever was done before it was extracted, I don't remember and it is probably moot now.

[Whereneverever]

Any updates?