Never-ending Jaw Pain! Help!

[Aaron]

Hi all.

No one seems to know what this could be and I'm wondering if you folks have any ideas.  For the last couple months or so I've had continuous jaw pain.  I've been taking close to 3,000MG of tilinol a day to control it.  The only thing that makes it worse is eating cold or hot things.  (By cold I mean only slightly below room temp., and by hot I mean only slightly above.)  Nothing but pain meds like tilinol makes it better.  When I take Tiliinol, it's totally gone.  Maybe I get a twinge now and then, but for the most part I don't notice it.  When it's here, I would place it at a 7-8 on the pain scale.  Enough that I can't do anything much when I have it.

I went to the dentist, but they found nothing wrong except for some ware on the jaw.  (The pain and ware is on both sides).  We've pretty well ruled out teeth clenching/grinding, which was their only idea.  I asked my dialysis docs and they are convinced that it's not dialysis related because I've only been on dialysis for a year.

All of my labs look good, except that my hematocrit is a titch low, and my PTH is about 150 above normal.

Now, to top things off, over the last few days, I've noticed that the nuckle joints in my left hand have started to become sore.  I don't really notice them unless I'm off tilinol, which doesn't happen very often, as you might imagine.

Has anyone had anything at all similar to this?  I'm diein' here.   Could high PTH cause this?  It's been high pretty much from the start as I recall.

Thanks for any and all help!

Aaron

[monrein]

I would speak to my neph about your PTH and be sure to tell him about all the bone pain as well as your need for so much tylenol.  Hope you get some answers soon.

[lizabee]

I have no ideas, sorry, but good luck!

[tyefly]

Aaron...... Here's a thought......  maybe its wax in your ear......  I had jaw pain  just like you describe and went to the dentist.... even had a wisdom tooth pulled   only to have the pain continue  and went to the doctor and they looked in my ear  and found that I had a wax plug....  just a lot of wax build up.... they used a water pic....  and that plug hit the nurse right in the head.....  I didnt even know that I couldnt hear as well either.....  very strange....but  that pain was gone.....  Since then  I have noticed that I do get a wax build up in that ear way more than the other and buy wax softer and keep it maintained.......    So   go to the doctor and have your ears checked out.....  you might have wax......

    Just a thought........  let us know.....kathy

[zona]

Aaron, I feel your pain! I too have jaw pain and also shooting pains in gums! I know I have high pth level but don't know if that is the cause. If you find out what is let me know. And I don't grind my teeth either.

[Chris]

TMJ is possible, but you need an ENT specialist (Ear, Nose, and Throat) to take a look. My dentist couldn't help with jaw pain and my doctor. referred me t one at the time.

[Restorer]

I get specific joint/knuckle pain when my phosphorus is high. Sometimes it's been bad enough that I needed more than the max daily dose of Tylenol to feel okay.

[kitkatz]

I have had unspecified Jaw pain for months also.  The dentist says it is not my teeth and cannot explain it.  TMJ may be the cause. you also may be grinding your teeth at night.  My dentist asked me about my blood pressure, so watch that, too. You can look up TMJ-tempo-mandibular joint. here are exercises to help with it.

[pamster42000]

A girl at work was having bad jaw pain and she found out that she was exercising too much. Just thought I would pass it along.....never heard of such a thing until she experienced it.

[Melissa]

I have jaw pain...on and off since I started dialysis.  It is mostly a mild discomfort, and sometimes feels like a sore throat too.  I also have a high PTH, and have had issues with phosphorus and calcium.  The pain has been bad this week, and I had bloodwork today.  I will let you know if any of my numbers were off.  My Dr's are perplexed, but think it is calcium related.  I am suspicious that it is a side effect of meds or something else at dialysis.  The pain is worst about an hour after I get my EPO, zemplar and iron.  Also, it is worse towards the end...maybe something to do with getting a little dry?
Oh, my PTH used to be very, very high and I did have knuckle and joint pain with that. 
I am going to ask my Dr. about this and will let you know what I find out.
Sorry your pain is so bad...hope you are on the way to discovering what causes it.