Jaw Pain

[deedee]

I was diagnosed with VF in October 2009. I had every sympton possible including joint pain, fever, erythema nodosum, rash, headache, muscle pains, chest discomfort, weakness etc.... The one sympton that I have NOT seen mentioned on this website is jaw pain. During the first two weeks of my sickness I suffered from a bad headache with pain above my eyes and below my eyes and in my jaws, upper and lower. The pain went away as my headache went away.
After my diagnosis, I was put on Diflucan for 3 months and have been off the meds for almost 2 months. My titer was 1:8 when I started the meds and was negative (no trace) when I stopped the meds.
My problem..... I now have an unexplained ache in my lower jaw. The dentist has taken many xrays and we cannot find a cause. Has anyone had a unexplainable jaw pain after having valley fever? I would not even think it was related except the pain in my jaws during the initial 2 weeks of the illness.
I'd appreciate any of your thoughts on this subject. Thank you!
PS The only other symptons I still have are tiredness and some knee pain.

[amurbach]

I was diagnosed with VF last year in March. I have some weird stuff going on with my jaw too. Some days I have trouble opening my mouth. It feels like my jaw is out of place and it takes a while to get to open without difficulty or clicking.
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Where there is a will there is a way!

[deedee]

Thanks for responding to my question about jaw pain. I'm sorry to hear that you have been having issues with your jaws as well.
The best way to describe my jaw pain is - it feels like a toothache but I can't determine one tooth that hurts. It hurts in my whole lower right jaw. My endodontist said that I needed a root canal on one of my teeth and maybe the jaw pain was just referred pain from "that" tooth. I had my root canal but I still have the jaw pain. I have no problems open and closing my jaw though.
Did you or anyone else ever have jaw pain when they first got sick with valley fever? I just can't stop thinking that this jaw pain that I am suffering from now could be related to valley fever since I had jaw pain (upper and lower) along with my headache when I was very sick with VF.
I did not notice any jaw pain when I was on the Diflucan. I have been off the meds for 2 months.
When I first saw my family doctor with what turned out to be VF he said I had a sinus infection and put me on antibiotics which did not help. It was only when I went to my Dermatologist about the Erythema Nodosum that I was told that I most likely had Valley Fever. He sent me for a blood test and chest x-ray which confirmed it.
I am thankful that I feel much better than before but I wish I didn't have these strange pains. Isn't it funny how just 6 months ago all I wished for was to stay alive and now I want to feel normal again????
Hope your jaw issues straighten out soon. Good Luck!

[deedee]

Just wanted to give you some results for my jaw pain issue. I had a root canal which didn't help. The next week they took out one of my wisdom teeth and I have NOT felt the jaw pain since. So..... I'm guessing it was the wisdom tooth causing problems.
I have a question. Does the cocci fungus silently destroy tissue, bone etc... in your body without any obvious symptons or does one usually feel sick, have headaches, suffer from pain etc....? I feel pretty good right now and wonderful compared to my first few months of sickness. My doctor at Mayo Clinic said I did not need any type of follow up care regarding Valley Fever unless I start to feel sick. Should I, even if I continue to feel good, return to the doctors and ask for them to recheck my blood?
I'd appreciate your thoughts.

[matilda]

This is weird...I can relate to the jaw pain. I work for a dentist and I year ago came out of braces which I had my wisdom teeth removed before going into them. Starting having lower back pain then a pain in my right ankle now a pain in my left jaw. I do not have TMJ which is a joint disorder of the jaw nor do I have wisdom teeth to cause the pain. Upon opening my mouth I get a shooting pain into my ear but once again nothing wrong. Also I have never had a cavity in my life. Let's just say that I am a walking example that just because the mints are sugar free the artifical sweetner is just as bad. I ate tons of sugar free mints because I had so much nausea it seemed to help. In two months of being diagnosed with VF I have developed 4 cavities. However the cavities are not big enough to require root canals...the jaw pain has my dentist baffled.
Glad to hear yours was resolved with having your wisdom tooth removed!

[deedee]

Matilda -
I've read your other posts and you sound like a really strong woman. I admire you for keeping your spirits up.
I feel pretty good but since I've suffered from VF I seem to get one weird sympton after another. Even though my blood tests show no VF.

Soon after my wisdom tooth removal and the improvement of my jaw pain I started to feel sick again. My knee joint started aching, I felt tired AND I started to get a one sided headache behind my ear. I went to the doctors because I feared it was valley fever and the blood test showed no signs of active cocci.
Today, I have a continuous headache on one side of my head, an ache in the protruding bone that connects my neck to my back, a slight jaw pain, and a feeling of numbness in my head. I was referred to a neurologist and he said it is "occipital neuralgia". He was 100% sure because it fit perfectly with my symptons. He said it is NOT caused by VF. He said the jaw pain can come from this condition as well. I don't know what caused it. I am taking Ibuprofen and putting ice on my neck 2x day.

Just wanted to let you know what else can cause an aching jaw.
Good luck!

[Sassia]

I am on my second round of VF. Headache , pain in face etc ( like sinus infection )Yes....

here is what my Doc tells me always : It is VF everything is possible.

He is very good in taking in what I say and he trusts my instincts on this .
The current round is in my vocal cords.

To everyone on this board : I pray for you all and I am sorry that you have to live with it .... it is a challenge.