Good luck with a full tongue recovery -- you have helped my state of mind! It is nice to know that what I have been experiencing is not completely out of the ordinary.

Angie

It would be interesting to have an opinion from a dermatologist as well as an ENT physician.

Do the white patches only occur on the side of the nerve damage? Does it effect the same region as the nerve damage, or are they small patches? Do they come and go, or is it pretty constant? Does the tongue injury cause you to rub the tongue on teeth, etc?

Let me think about this one and ask around.

Ross

My doctor has treated it with two different anti-fungal medications and a round of antibiotics, none of which affected it at all. The pain I feel in my tongue is similar to what you feel after burning your tongue on a very hot drink -- a little sore yet a little numb, sometimes a little tingly. It started feeling this way immediately after having my wisdom teeth removed. It is not as sore as it was right after the surgery, but it did not improve much after the first month or so.

The tongue injury does not cause my tongue to rub on my teeth. Besides, the whiter part of the tongue is back where the teeth can't touch it anyway. I'm not too surprized that you're not familiar with it -- my doctor has been completely stumped. Extensive blood tests have ruled out any underlying systemic cause of the whiteness. I have (and have never had) any type of dermological problems.

If you ever see or hear anything along these lines, please let me know. Your site has been a big help to me!

Ross

My white coating is also "thicker" in the back of the tongue and covers the whole tongue, not just the damaged side. I also notice that my mouth gets drier easier than it used to.

I bought a tongue scraper but it doesn't always seem to work. some days the coating is thicker than others.

Has anyone else tried anything to get a pinker tongue? I am curious to know the reason for this and how many people have experienced this.

I too had a wisdom tooth extraction upper left with everything appearing normal for two to three weeks then suddently I'd get a very dry mouth, as if someone had stuffed a load of cotten wool in my mouth and I instantly had to get a drink. This would last for 5 minutes or so and subside.

Then I had some inflammation in the side of my mouth which the doctor prescribed penicillin for. However I felt very sick - strange as I don't normally react badly to antibiotics. It was all downhill from there. I ended up in casualty because I could get no relief from the awful sensation in my mouth and the dryness which left my tongue very white. The doctor at casualty said I ought to see an ENT specialist just in case it a saliver problem, as one needs the enzymes to digest food and keep the mouth in good order. My doctor disputed this and said I need an oral surgeon. Unfortunately my tongue problem wasn't considered a problem and I received a biopsy for the inflammation on the cheek which was negative.

I was off work for three months, because I was tired, could only eat a very bland diet, mainly fish bananas and mash, anything that didn't irritate my mouth. In desperation I asked the doctor for nystatin for thrush and my tongue reverted to something resembling my tongue. I've had two more courses of antibiotics which resulted in a white tongue again, followed by two more courses of Nystatin.

My tongue hasn't been itself for some time. Like yours it goes white all over except for the sides and tip, especially if I'm subject to strong odours, perfumes, hosehold chemicals.

The confusion lies in whether it was wisdom extraction induced or thrush induced.

I carry a synthetic oral saliver spray and hope that the problem sorts itself.

I'm having an MRI scan soon to investigate the burning and pain in my top and bottom left side. The pain in the site of the extraction was explained by the dentist as being the bone healing which could take a few months.

I'm also on a yeast free diet and have read a book on candida which on reflection details some of my symptoms

Conclusion: Thrush low grade brought on by infection in the mouth after extraction and/or antibiotics,

OR

alteration in mucosa and sensation in the mouth due to damage after extraction.

OR BOTH

I think I could deal with the problem more if Doctors were less than baffled unless of course they feel liable in some way. They dismis the symptoms as neurotic etc......

I wish you all the best and good luck.

thanks in advance.
neal
nealvaller@yahoo.com

Another attampt to glean ANYTHING on my tongue issue. One day I found white patches on my tongue. I freaked out for a few weeks, trying everything, diet, mouthwash, gintian violet, anti-candida everything. Eating better really boosted my immune system, but although the white patches went away after a month, the tip of my tongue still has this problem.

ok, here are my symptons EXACTLY. I have burning tongue, and the surface if a little rougher than before, and generally more sensitive. But I get a tiny sore (starts always at the tip, which slowly grows to the size of a dime or so (it spreads) and then blends in (the process seems to be about ten days), then repeats itself. This has been happening for 6 months now. If I eat no sugar, I may be able to curtail the speed of the process some (I think) I have tried a full course of a wide spectrum antibiotic, 3 types of antifungals, and lots of homeopathic stuff. If I have systemic candida, then I have no other problems but my tongue, because I feel great. This site is the first I ever considered nerve issues, or blood flow issues.

I am wanting to try the hot peppers. I want real peppers, not some pepper pill. So, does anyone know the best way to take them, how many, how often, especially the guy above who mentioned hot peppers. I once had a bad acid reflux problem (i think it was acid reflux, one never knows, my gastro was useless) and I got better shortly after taking amounts of garlic and cayenne chopped into a teaspoon of warm honey, so I have some possible faith in peppers. Since I am not a hot pepper person, I want to know how to prepare and eat them, and what might be best to release the cyasine (or whatever the stuff in them is that may help nerve issues in the mouth. For now, I have just learned to live with it.

By the way, I have been to a gastro (who said "the papilae on the front of your tongue look inflamed, you need an ENT), an ENT (who said, here take HCL (hydrochloric acid) and Betaine, which actually really gave me lots more energy, worth a try for any of you, get info on internet) , a dentist (who asked me if I had AIDS (not), then gave me antibiotics)which didnt hurt or help, and a candida speacialist (who wrote the book BACK TO HEALTH A COMPREHENSIVE GUIDE TO YEAST CONTROL named DR REMINGTON, they did some wierd homeopathic stuff, charged me a lot to look real close at my blood cells, and told me its hard to tell if its yeast or not). Basically, they were all fairly clueless. I wonder what the MAYO clinic knows about this stuff.

Feel free to ask me any questions, or give me ANY suggestions. I have done 100s of hours of research.

Larry thisoldhouse@networld.com

Sorry you are hurt like this. Give yourself time to recover. It can be a slow process and frustrating as you heal. Keep searching for info from your dentist. You will also find a great deal of info and support on this site.

Did you call your dentist? What did he tell you? Are you having any signs of recovery. Tingling or an increase in feeling? Anything?

T

I don't think the dose of steriods that the doctor gave you should cause you any problems. Usually these are given for a short period of time and you just need to follow the dosing instructions. That is what I had to do for my son when he had a bad reaction to poison oak. It didn't hurt him at all, but helped him. It is your choice to take it or not, but there are some that believe it can help the swelling. I think I would have taken it if given the opportunity. I would go on line and read up on this medication and talk to your doctor about your concerns.

I find applying heat to my face helps with my pain and I also like to go into the shower and have the hot water run on my face. You my find this helpful or maybe an ice pack will work better for you. Experiment and see what works. I also found that when tired I have more pain too. Get as much rest as you can and baby yourself. Allow your body to heal and post your progress.

Good Healing
"T"

Char

any sugestions please?

If anyone suffers from this similar problem, please enlighten me on a thearapy that has worked for you. The pain is tremendous and I am awakened yelling from the pain.

Sharon

Think positive, and believe in the power of prayer. My doctor said that it was a damaged nerve. I immediately stopped taking the pain RX, to take full control of what I was feeling. Tylenol seems to sooth the soreness.

Will write back if I ever get full feeling / sensation.

It's really annoying..to only have partial feel on the tongue.. we take alot of things for granted.. don't we?? )

I may be off base, but you need to see a doctor to rule this out first.

Good luck
Joanne

It started as a tingling sensation in the BACK of my tongue. It wasnt all the time, started out maybe one or two days a week. Then it went away for a week, then came back. Finally it got to the point where I had the sensation all the time AND the sensation grew to "all over" my tongue.

Also I have trouble swallowing sometimes. I feel like I have a lump in my throat on occassion. Another item....I've had a "Sore" spot on my tongue sometimes as well...kind of like a canker feeling sore but its just a small red dot...but it goes away after a day or two.

As I type this the left side of my tongue feels ICE cold.

This is all TOO weird.

I have just been reading the messages on this site as I have very similar symptoms to Larry. I have had a sore tongue since having a very "bodged" root canal 2 years ago! My tongue and gums tingle from mid-morning onwards and I have sores on my tongue which start as small and red and gradually grow to cover about a quarter of the tongue before healing. Then the cycle starts again! I have seen various docs who say that it's nerve damage and I should notice some improvement in about 6 months but I'm not holding out much hope.

Any news, Larry? Or does anyone else have any ideas? Can I get hold of the hot pepper candies here in the UK?

I consumed a LOT of Altoids last week, and now have tongue sores after years of being without them.

I have not had any teeth pulled so I don't think mine is due to nerve damage. It has even gone away on some occasions (usually for only a couple days). Similar to Jennifer I started to experience a slight dryness or tingly sensation on the back of my tongue. This was about 4 months ago. In the past 2 months it has gotten worse to the point of feeling like it is burned. Sometimes the roof of my mouth feels the same way. I think it may be to stress since I am handling a complicated project. My entire tongue burns and often is coated with a white coating. Sometimes it even looks yellow. The pain usually gets worse throughout the day. My doctor looked at my tongue and said he saw nothing but a tiny canker sore which he ruled was causing the problem. I probably should not have brushed my tongue that morning.

Just recently I have noticed that it got much worse the day after I had two beers which leads me to believe that this could also be candida (thrush). I am going to reduce my sugar and yeast intake by avoiding bread, soda, beer and wine. I am also beginning to take the supplement, acidophilus. I will let folks know if I see any changes.

In the meantime I will start adding hot peppers to my food and stop eating all those Altoids.

Anyone else with any ideas? Good luck to everyone.

Very interesting site. Every time I tell somebody I have a tongue problem I just get strange looks. About four months ago, I started getting sores on my tongue(I did have a crown put on around that time too). They start out as small and white and grow to about the size of a dime by the time they are done. The sores are usally red and bordered by a white edge. If I eat something they kind of rub off and they are always way worse in the morning. They seems to flair up worse with beer, pizza and other spicy foods. It's very frustrating because the condition appears to get better, but then, WHAM!, it comes back in a few days. Even when the sores are gone, my tongue is still very tender on the top and very red. The pain is always there, worse sometimes than others.

I've seen the doctors three times and they just dismiss it. They almost seem annoyed now. All she told me the first time was not to worry, it wasn't herpies. Very reassuring, thanks lady! Herpes wasn't a big concern of mine. They gave me the 'magic mouthwash', but it did no good. Even when the sores are not there , the front of my tongue is red and VERY tender. This is very strange, I feel healthy otherwise besides the usual aches and pains. I do have a minor sore throat a lot , but I've had those come and go for some time.

My dentist has tried to help from time to time, but he's clueless also. I can seem to control it SOMEWHAT by drinking only water and not eating really hot/spicy foods. But, even when I do that, it dosen't completely go away. Very strange, never had anything this frustrating in my life. I guess we take our tongue for granted until something like this.

Any advice or thoughts?

Thanks for you time,
Rob

Thanks

Diane

Paul

I have tiney red spots on the first part of my toung, light white to thicker white in the back. in the back I also have some pink bumps.
I had a wisdom tooth pulled about two weeks before.

I also have small pink bumps on my top lip and in side my cheeks and my toung and cheeks burn.

not when I wake up just after I eat and deink.

I have been on drugs and thrush meds nothing works If I brush my toung that helps. if you have any Ideas thanks.

jeff.viar@yahoo.com

I'm glad however to have partners in this. I have discovered that Singulair makes it worse.

My GP said it was a virus, not Herpes and recommends searing the spots with salt. Biotiene products help a little but not enough. What about Sjogrims Disorder?