Ok, to begin I am a 26 year old female, generally in good health. In June, I went to the dentist because I had a lump in my jaw (right on my jawbone, halfway between my chin and ear). At that time it was barely noticeable, maybe the size of a pea, and you couldn't see it if you looked at me, but I could feel it when I pressed the underside of my jaw. So the dentist when I went said that they didn't have any same day appointments, and sent me to the ER. At the ER, I told them I thought maybe it was a wisdom tooth (they had been coming in) and that maybe one was impacted. They did 2 EKGs (I don't know why) and a CT scan and ended up giving me pennicilin and telling me they thought I had strep throat. (I didn't.) Then in September, when the lump had at least quadrupled in size, I went back to the doctor. The doctor told me that it was probably an infection due to a dental infection, and that it was a hard lymph node. So I waited another month--- that's how long it took to be seen by the dentist again--- and they took more Xrays and said that it wasn't a lymph node, but a mass (hard like bone, not squishy and mobile) in my mandible area and suggested it could be an abcess in my bone, a cyst, a tumor, etc. And referred me to an oral surgeon, which I am scheduled to go see on Friday.
The lump is still there, perhaps now the size of a walnut, generally painless though sometimes it feels "pinched"-- like a nerve or something. No fever, no other real symptoms except the lump.
Can anyone tell me what is going on? What can I expect? Could it be an impacted/infected tooth like I suspected four months ago?? What are the chances its something more serious?
You can imagine my frustration at being passed around without any answers and without any real help.
Any help or suggestions would be appreciated. Thank you!
