Just to add to our collection of odd ailments, like Geographic Tongue, here is mine: had a sore, slightly swollen place under tongue for a few days. Yesterday I suddenly realized I had huge swollen glands under my jaw, very painful when pressed on. Freaked out, Then got sensible and checked with Dr Google. Blocked salivary gland. How to treat this? Suck on something very sour, like a piece of lemon, stimulates saliva production and the swelling goes down. When it starts to build up again, another piece of lemon. Seems much better today. But how weird. I'd never heard of this before.
Blocked salivary gland : Just to add to our... - PMRGCAuk
Blocked salivary gland
Written by
HeronNS
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48 Replies
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DorsetLadyPMRGCAuk volunteer
Glad you’ve found a solution!
You can get a Calcium gland stone in the ducts. There are pictures and like other stones can be removed. 🌻
HeronNS in reply to
Yes, Dr Google explained that quite clearly. However my lemon treatment seems to have worked. If there was a stone it's likely cleared itself, and it might have been something else as I do remember biting the inside of my mouth a few days ago and instead of it getting better right away it developed the swelling, so my initial thought was an infection.
in reply to HeronNS
I believe they slip back in. I realise I must Google such strange things😂😂😂
HeronNS in reply to
Along with the lemon (Google actually recommended sugar free sour candy but I had a lemon and no candy) the suggestion was to massage the area. How, one wonders, does one massage under the tongue? Ah, with the tip of the tongue!
in reply to HeronNS
Good point. Mirror aNd a finger??
HeronNS in reply to
Nope, tip of tongue! I think I shall go treat my mouth with a bit of alcohol now. Sherry?
My tongue has been hurting a lot this week. That's because I keep biting it so I don't tell my boss he's going down the wrong road...
I know he'll come around over the weekend and do it my way. Either that or I'll give him a good tongue lashing and that will take care of it.
~How interesting Heron - thank you for that useful information. Glad that a simple solution worked well ~
I'd say Google saved me having to see a medical person, because the glands under my jaw really were quite astonishingly large and painful, and now they are nearly back to normal. 
~Absolutely, we became wise as we juggle the many differing issues that we encounter on our PMR journey & sometimes it can be as a simple what you discovered.
As soon as I see a slightly infected spot I pull out my trusty Crysterderm (lipid stabilized hydrogen peroxide 1%). Magic every time. That's just one of the tools in my trusty tool box of tricks ~
Ouch, I bet that hurt! Can't relate to a blocked salivary gland, but I had a blocked milk duct when I was nursing my first child many decades ago and it was excruciating.
Glad you found a simple 🍋 solution and I hope it does the trick. Thanks for sharing you never now when any one of us might be smitten with the same thing.
Too true. And I thought it was kind of amusing, really, that such things can happen. I remember the milk duct thing - best solution for that was a nursing baby!
Yup, that's what did the trick. No Dr. Google in those days, but I had had a very knowledgeable pharmacist (I think I went looking for a cream or something) who gave me the tip. I pretty sure the tip was from her personal experience though,.
I haven’t either. Thank goodness the remedy is reassuringly old fashioned and harmless. I really think there is something going on with salivary glands and tear ducts too. I have trouble with both. My GP is so bored with me , he won’t let me speak. I do have dry eye drops and saliva stimulating pastilles. I will go suck a lemon too. Cripes!
Be careful with sucking on lemons. The acid can be bad for tooth enamel. Use sparingly!
Mention it to Sarah - you are possibly developing sicca syndrome (just means dry) but that is the same presentation as Sjogrens which is (guess what) autoimmune ... It's dealt with symptomatically mostly but needs keeping an eye on.
Oh PMRPro, I know. I tick every box. I love the way My GP prescribes dry eye drops and saliva stimulators without an ounce of curiosity or joining up the dots. Thanks as ever!
I got a blocked salivary gland Christmas 2013. Only discovered by a new set of headphones when they hurt near my ear. First doctor said it was blocked but would get better on it's own. I the developed more pain and swelling and went back to different gp said it was way past going on it's own, started antibiotics but warned that if i started vomiting, call and he would get me sent straight to A&E. Obviously vomiting started, OH rushed to get gp letter and I was admitted half hour later. Had to bring in a consultant from Southampton and I was operated on a few hours later. I now have a 2 inch scar on cheek because there was abscess there as well. It took 6 months for infection to drain fully!! Do not just leave it even if its not as painful. If its blocked you will need antibiotics and although bitter things help in the early stages it can deteriorate really quickly. Good luck with abd I hope it settles quicklyx
Aaakk! I will heed the warning. As if happens I have a medical appointment on Monday so will be sure to tell my doctor. Not that she's likely to be either concerned or helpful.
Interesting and well worth knowing
However the thought of lemon made me pull faces let alone sucking it
Haha, that's the point! I'm not in the habit of consuming lemon other than perhaps squeezed over fish but it did indeed cause saliva to flow! I wonder why that is? Maybe it's the body's way of diluting a very sour flavour?
Or yoghurt!
ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articl...
and it is a reflex response:
physoc.onlinelibrary.wiley....
Yes, but why?
bbc.co.uk/science/humanbody...
It is reflex - like Pavlov's dogs or someone poking you with a pin. The presence of food in your mouth stimulates a part of your brain and saliva is produced to make eating it possible. Pure lemon juice itself is a strong such stimulus - smelling it isn't enough and manufactured similar products cause a far weaker response.
Thanks for the information, worth knowing. I have an intermittent painful ear, no infection, and realised just below the ear the glands were painful too. I have catarrh and when it lessens the glands are less painful. My GP looked at me in disbelief but as long as I keep my tubes clear the pain isn't there. No coloured mucus so no antis needed. I know when it's blocked because when I lift my head off the pillow in the morning, I sleep on that side, the pain is searing. Steam inhalation seems to clear it. Just another weird thing.
That does sound unusual. Does it happen often, or in certain weather conditions?
Have you tried a neti pot, or similar?
Never heard of that - what is it?
mayoclinic.org/diseases-con...
I have used one by Neilmed for several years and I think it is helpful. The key is to make sure the water used is exactly the right temperature (body temperature) and to use regularly, like every morning. There are a number of different devices on the market and another type might be better for you. This one is simple irrigation, no force applied, so the most basic model. shop.neilmed.com/Products/N...
I bought it at my local pharmacy and can also get the saline solution packets there too, and I think supermarket pharmacies also carry them now.
It is probably the difference in pressure because the blockage stops it balancing out. Like when flying with a cold. Chewing gum or hard bread crusts used to be recommended for the kids in Germany to encourage the eustachian tubes to drain - if they aren't at the ideal angle they won't do so as efficiently. And lying down overnight makes a difference.
That sounds both painful and worrying, Heron - glad you’ve found a remedy! I sometimes get ulcers and one of the worst was on the under-tongue salivary gland, ouch...!
They do seem to occur at times of stress - are you over the worst with your house-move?
One good thing, mouth issues do heal very quickly because of rapid cell turnover.
The floor realignment has finally been done and I'm very pleased with the result. There is still a bit more repair around the edges where the wall was damaged when old baseboard was ripped off but once that's done we can get a large piece of furniture into the right place and a number of other dominoes will then fall and perhaps the end of this adventure will be in sight! Thank you for asking.
Then we will all come round for tea. I bet it’s a Palace.
I wish! A palace with the servants to look after it. 🤴
Glad to hear your house is settling and you are meeting some neighbors. 💐
Get your B12 checked, also vitamin D and blood calcium. B12 deficiency, anemia and RA can all cause a burning tongue condition with your tongue. If you are taking Vitamin D3 (which you should be), make sure you are taking it with vitamin K2. I’m not a doctor, a naturopathic Dr would be a good person to consult with, but I’m a dental professional. Witthiut actually doing an exam on you, it’s hard to say exactly what is causing your burning. Tongue, but those are a start. Oral candida is another condition that can cause a burning sensation on your tongue. Vitamin K2 inhibits calcium from leaching from your bones so it’s a good idea to take it. You can often find it in a combo with vitamin d3. Prednisone can cause bone density issues, and the calcium can deposit elsewhere in your body, ie saliva, arteries, etc. Something to chat about with your dr.
Umm, are you replying to me? I don't have any tongue symptoms, or burning sensations anywhere in mouth. Thank you for your concern; I'm aware of all the things you mention re pred effects on bones, Vitamin K2, etc.
Sorry I was confused with another tongue ailment and combined it with your issue. My apologies
No worries. I was just concerned that you might have meant the reply for someone else, who wasn't getting your knowledge because directed at me instead. Cheers!
I had that about 2 years ago, stubborn little stone was hard to get rid of and I ws prescribed loads of antibiotics because it was infected, very painful, eventually I had an x-ray and they swooshed it out with industrial-strength lemon juice while they were there. For a while I/docs thought I might have Sjogrens Syndrome but getting rid of the stone seemed to sort it. The glands still swell up often though, it could be oral allergy syndrome (OAS) or a feature of the histamine intolerance I also have because both make my mouth and face swell up.
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