Pitmom:
I have very prominent tori on my lower oral pallet. Mine are due to high circulating growth hormone which predated failure of my Pituitary gland.
Given your daughter’s Cushings diagnosis I would suspect that there may be a a familiar tendency toward some Pituitary hormone imbalances in your family.
Tortocoli are bony ridges in the upper or lower pallett. They are benign and harmless but can be quite prominent. about
15% of the general population has torticoli.
Clenching of the teeth/jaw tends to exacerbate their growth and pain. The pressure of clenching the teeth gives signal to the body to produce more bone. Getting fitted for a resting mouthguard is beneficial. I have an orthodontist who has fabricated resting mouthsplints for me. This route is fairly expensive.
Amazon has a selection of resting mouthsplints available through mail-in dental labs. The dental lab sends you an oral impression kit (a dental tray that makes a mold of your teeth/occlusion) that you mail back to the lab. The lab makes a custom acrylic or soft silicon mouthguard that you receive in about
10-12 days. These cost about
$60-$120.
Most important: Look for a BPA-free material to avoid any secondary endocrine toxicity. If you have a small mouth, be careful in reading through the product details for a kit that has a pediatric tray sized for a small mouth. You have mentioned that you are a small person. I have a very petite body frame (and a petite mouth) and am a better fit for pediatric-sized medicine. You may be more pediatric-sized than adult-sized, as well.
Other than a mouthsplint, regular daily swishing with warmed salt water is helpful. Oral bacteria can get reside inside the bone matrix of a torticoli and cause a low grade bone infection.
Regular dental hygiene visits with your dentist are a helpful proactive strategy. Daily flossing, salt water swishing, and use of a sonic toothbrush.
Torticoli will grow where there is heightened gum inflammation. Make sure to have regular dental visits for care of your teeth and gums. Periodontal disease and gum inflammation will give rise to more discomfort of your existing torticoli.
The torticoli in my bottom pallet feel like small mountains. They can be painful when the overlying tissue is stretched thin when the torticoli have a growth-spurt. I swish with warm salt water as well as suck on crushed ice chips for relief.
If your oral pain persists or if you also have a low grade fever and/or unusually foul breath, see your dentist or primary care physician. These may be signs of a low grade bone infection of the torticoli that would indicate need of an antibiotic.
We can be torticoli friends,
Karen
Post Edited ((Seashell)) : 2/13/2019 7:12:14 AM (GMT-7)