1800 202 8726 Book Now
1800 202 8726

A gum or jaw swelling that will not settle

  • Most of these are a tooth, and they settle once the tooth is dealt with
  • An abscess improves within days of being treated. That is the test
  • If a tooth came out and the swelling stayed, say so when you book
  • Teeth loosening in one small area is worth mentioning too
Toll free · 8am to 8pm · Telugu, Hindi and English1800 202 8726
A dental consulting room where a jaw is examined

Treated already and no better?

Tell us what has been done so far and where you live. The first consultation is free, and bring any X-ray you already have, even an old one.

No referral needed. If this is still a dental problem, you will be told that and pointed back to a dentist.

2Weeks, or one course, whichever is first
17Oncologists on the panel
10Centres across Hyderabad
41Locations across two states

Start here

Nearly always, it is a tooth

The jaw is full of teeth and their roots, and almost everything that swells around them starts there. These 4 cover the great majority, and all of them respond to dental treatment.

A cold compress wrapped in cloth, resting on a table
COMMONEST

An abscess at a tooth root

Painful, often with a bad taste, sometimes with the face swelling on that side. Once it is drained or the tooth is treated, it improves within days.

A glass of water beside a small bowl of salt, for a warm rinse
VERY COMMON

A wisdom tooth coming through

The gum over a partly erupted wisdom tooth swells and traps food. It flares, settles, and flares again until the tooth is dealt with.

A toothbrush and floss on a bathroom counter
COMMON

Gum disease

Puffy gums that bleed when brushing, usually across several areas rather than one spot. It improves with cleaning and better brushing.

A plain envelope on a table, the kind an X-ray is sent home in
LESS COMMON

A cyst around a root

A slow, painless swelling that shows up on an X-ray, often around a dead or treated tooth. It is not cancer and it is treatable.

All 4 have one thing in common: they get better when the tooth is dealt with. That response is the test the rest of this page is built on.

What is different

3 ways a swelling can behave unlike a tooth problem

None of these means cancer. They mean the swelling is not following the usual pattern, and that is the reason to have it looked at rather than treated again.

A made bed in a quiet room, undisturbed
THE QUIET ONE

It does not hurt

Dental swellings usually hurt, often badly. One that has grown steadily without pain is not more dangerous by itself, but it is behaving unlike the common causes.

A smooth river stone on a pale surface
HOW IT FEELS

It feels firm, not soft

An abscess feels soft and tense. A swelling that feels hard and fixed, as though it is part of the bone rather than sitting on it, is a different finding.

Overlapping cup rings on a table, marking the same spot again and again
THE PATTERN

It keeps coming back to the same spot

Treated, settled, returned. Treated again, settled, returned. Repeating in exactly the same place is the pattern most worth mentioning.

One thing that is a genuine emergency, and it is not cancer. Go to a hospital now if a swelling is spreading under your jaw or down your neck with fever. The same applies if you are struggling to swallow or open your mouth. A dental infection that spreads like that can close the airway. Everything else on this page can wait for a normal appointment.

The thing to say out loud

If a tooth came out and the swelling stayed

This is the most useful sentence you can bring to an appointment, and almost nobody thinks to say it. A socket is sore and puffy for about a week, then closes over and settles. One that does not is telling you the tooth was not the cause.

First weekSore, puffy, slowly improving. Entirely normal, and no cause for concern.
After a monthThe socket should have closed. A swelling still there has outlived the tooth that was blamed.
What to sayTell them the tooth came out and this did not go. That one sentence changes the appointment.

The same applies to repeat treatment. If you have had 2 courses for the same spot and nothing has changed, a third is not the answer. Asking for the bone underneath to be looked at is reasonable.

What else to notice

3 details worth mentioning that people leave out

These are easy to dismiss as unrelated, and any of them alongside a swelling that has not settled makes the case for a proper look.

An apple and a few almonds on a plate
THE TELLING ONE

Teeth loose in one small area

Teeth loosening all over is usually gum disease. Teeth loosening in one small area while the rest of the mouth is fine is a different thing entirely.

A cup of tea on a saucer
OFTEN IGNORED

Numbness of the lip or chin

A patch of lip or chin that feels dead or tingly on one side, with nothing to explain it, matters more than it seems.

A denture in a glass on a bedside table
RARELY MENTIONED

A denture that stopped fitting

A denture is moulded to the shape of your jaw. If it has stopped sitting right and nothing else changed, the shape underneath may have changed.

Any of these along with the swelling?Say all of it when you call. It changes how quickly you are seen and what gets arranged.
Book a Free Consultation1800 202 8726

What happens

4 steps, and the X-ray does most of the work

The swelling you can see is the smaller half of the story. What matters is the bone underneath, and that needs a picture.

An examination light in a bright clinic room
FIRST

A look in the mouth

Where the swelling is, which teeth sit in it, whether any are loose. A couple of minutes and it does not hurt.

A dental X-ray viewer switched on
THE USEFUL ONE

An X-ray of the jaw

This shows the bone under the swelling, which nobody can see or feel. It takes a minute, and bring any old X-ray you have because the comparison is valuable.

The side of the neck examined by hand
ALWAYS

The jaw and neck felt by hand

Along the jawline and down both sides of the neck. It takes a minute and it often settles how urgent this is.

A folder and pen, where the findings are written down
THEN

What was found, written down

Including if it is dental after all, which is the commonest outcome. You are told plainly and pointed to the right person.

Questions

8 questions people ask, and the honest answers

Starting with the one that brings most people here, and the one nobody thinks is worth saying.

01

The tooth was taken out but the swelling is still there. Is that normal?

For a few days, yes. For weeks, no. A socket is sore and puffy for about a week and then settles. A swelling still there a month later, or a socket that has not closed over, is the most useful thing you can tell a doctor. It usually means the tooth was not the cause.

02

Is a swollen gum or jaw usually cancer?

No, and it is usually a tooth. The great majority are an abscess, a wisdom tooth, gum disease or a cyst around a tooth root. What makes one worth a second look is not how it appears but how it behaves: whether it settled when it was treated.

03

How long should I give it?

2 weeks, or one course of treatment, whichever comes first. An abscess that has been drained or treated improves within days. If a full course has come and gone and nothing has changed, the answer is not another course.

04

It does not hurt at all. Is that better or worse?

Neither, but it is worth mentioning. Dental swellings usually hurt, sometimes a great deal. A swelling that has grown quietly without pain is not more dangerous by itself. It is behaving unlike the common causes, and that is the reason to have it looked at.

05

My teeth have become loose in one area. Does that matter?

Yes, and say it when you book. Teeth loosening across the whole mouth is usually gum disease. Teeth loosening in one small area, with the rest of the mouth fine, is different and it is worth mentioning specifically.

06

My denture stopped fitting. Could that be related?

It can be, and people rarely think to mention it. A denture is moulded to the shape of your jaw. If it has stopped sitting properly and nothing else has changed, the shape underneath may have. It is a small detail that occasionally matters a lot.

07

Will I need an X-ray?

Almost certainly, and it is quick. A dental X-ray shows the bone under the swelling, which is the part nobody can see or feel. It takes a minute and it settles a great deal on its own.

08

Should I see a dentist or come here?

See a dentist first if you have not already. Most of these are dental and a dentist is the right person. Come here if a dentist has treated it and it has not settled, if a tooth came out and the swelling stayed, or if you have had more than one course for the same spot.

Where

Examined at all 10 Hyderabad centres

The look and the examination run anywhere. Where a jaw X-ray is needed, that is arranged from the same visit rather than as a separate trip.

Beyond the city, 31 more towns across 16 districts of Telangana and north Andhra Pradesh. Ask for the closest when you call.

Free ConsultationFindings Written Down

If it was treated and did not settle, that is the reason to come.

Give us your name, number and where you live. Bring any X-ray you already have. If this is still a dental problem you will be told so and sent to the right person.

Toll free 1800 202 8726 · No referral needed · Telugu, Hindi and English

Treated already and no better? Bring any old X-ray · first consultation free

Call Now1800 202 8726 Book a Free ConsultationBook Consultation