Infected Salivary Gland?

[Guest BERNESES]

I feel like i am a mutant! Last week I noticed I had a swollen lymph node under my jaw and the next day a huge lump on my jaw so i went to my doctor and it turned out to be an infected salivary gland. has anyone had one before? I read they can be fairly common after surgery- had my gall bladder out about a month ago so don't know if that's the correlation. Weird stuff!

She gave me Keflex which seems to be doing the job.

[angel-jd1]

I've never had one but it sure sounds painful. Hope you get feeling better soon.

-Jessica

[Green12]

I feel like i am a mutant! Last week I noticed I had a swollen lymph node under my jaw and the next day a huge lump on my jaw so i went to my doctor and it turned out to be an infected salivary gland. has anyone had one before? I read they can be fairly common after surgery- had my gall bladder out about a month ago so don't know if that's the correlation. Weird stuff!

She gave me Keflex which seems to be doing the job.

I've never heard of this.

You have had so much to deal with, the surgery, your exams, etc. You've been under a lot of stress and your immune system has taken a beating as a result, it was a prime time for an infection to take up residence and settle in.

Take real good care of yourself during this time and get as much rest as possible.

I hope you heal quickly and get to feeling better, and stronger, real soon

[Moongirl]

I have an enlarged salivary gland, they also gave me keflex..it didnt make it go away, but it did get a bit smaller. But you can def get lumps and bumps around that area if u are fighting an infection, i wouldnt worry, sometimes those take time to go away....even if the infection is gone they can still stay enlarged.

Hope u feel better

PS my ENT also told me that those glands can enlarge due to dehydration...so drink up!

[Guest BERNESES]

Ahhh... dehydration? That could be due to the copious amounts of diet Coke I drank during the exam. She told me to suck on lemon drops to activate the gland. I told my hubby the doctor told me to go suck a lemon!

It's definitely much better- I'm just beat. First infection I've had since going gluten-free though!

[LKelly8]

My mother, also celiac, has this Open Original Shared Link. I never knew you could get stones in your salivary gland. She tries to stay away from the antibiotics if she can, I think mostly to avoid going to the doctor! She uses lemon drops, makes sure she drinks enough fluid, etc.

I've been diagnosed with sjogren's (show-grins) syndrome, it causes dry eyes/mouth and is yet another autoimmune disorder to add to my already impressive list.

Open Original Shared Link

[evie]

Sjogrens Syndrome

kelly....my husband & I both have had sjogrens disease for several years, we use eye drops and i am so thirsty most of the time. I keep a thermos of water nearby, do not drink hardly anything but filtered water. I wonder if this problem also fits in with celiac disease? If you notice I do not capitalize much it is my keyboard not responding correctly. evie

[Guest BERNESES]

I read about the stones and Sjogren's. Actually a friend of mine has lupus and Sjogren's. Ugh! Gotta love these clusters of autoimmune disorders! Wish they could do autoimmune transplants

Actually, I am thirsty ALL the time and my friends are always asking if I'm diabetic. Have been tested many times and I'm not, but I didn't know that was a symptom of Sjogren's. I don't have dry eyes though.

[indyceliac]

My son had one before and the doctor actually suggested having him suck on SOUR candies..because it gets the salivary glands to work harder..helps clear out the infection, i guess.

I dunno, useless info thought i would share! : )

(oops, i see someone already posted about the lemon drops).

[LKelly8]

I wonder if this problem also fits in with celiac disease?

All the autoimmune disorders tend to cluster. I guess it's like a bad wheel on a wagon, once one spoke breaks the whole wagon starts to wobble!

I have sjogren's, celiac and I've had active juvenile rheumatoid arthritis since infancy. My mother has celiac and vitiligo. Other autoimmune disorders in my family: ulcerative colitis, multiple sclerosis, and crohn's. All on my mother's side and affecting the women only. Seriously, we should be studied.

[debmidge]

Did the infection start with a salivary gland stone? I've had stones get stirred up and block the gland's opening and the glad blew up. Once the stone dislodges the glad goes down. (by the way, cats get this a lot so I might be part cat!)

The stones get stired up when I have a lifesaver or coughdrop in my mouth.

[Guest BERNESES]

How would I know if I had a stone? It just started as a swelling that was very tender. First time I've ever had it. Gone now though

[lgleeson]

How would I know if I had a stone? It just started as a swelling that was very tender. First time I've ever had it. Gone now though

I had a stone that blocked my salivary gland for alsmost 10 years before being diagnosed. There is a test that they can do. It kept getting bigger and I had more and more infections. It got to the point where I had to have my salivary gland removed. The stone was an inch long. I, too, have celiac but am not sure of the correlation. I do not have Sjoren's. I feel great now!

[jeannie]

My husband sucks on Jolly Ranchers.....sour lemon. He is prone to have this problem, so he keeps thems around and uses them as needed.....

[Bluehydrangea]

I'm not sure if I have celiac or not but I'm fairly certain I do now that I've been reading about it. I'm convinced I have DH. My salivary gland gets swollen so large it looks like i have the mumps. This happens when I eat something I shouldn't. It used to swell and then the awful itching would start. Used to be no bumps or anything. Just the swollen gland and intense itching. I went to ENT doc and he told me there was nothing wrong with it but if it itched go see a dermatologist. The problem I had is that I didn't know what was making it swell or making me itch. So unless I ate something I shouldn't I couldn't make it happen. So the dermatologist saw nothing either.

So for the last 7 years or so I've been convinced it's just something I have to live with.

I'm trying to cut out gluten and it helps. Hard to do though. I went out to dinner tonight and had nothing that even remotely appeared to have any gluten. However, there was a balsamic glaze on the chicken that I'm now convince had gluten. 15 minute after eating my salivary gland was so swollen and the itching started.

I came home and took a benadryl and it seems to have calmed it down.

[AnneM]

I have had 2 saliva gland infections, not sure what caused them, but they sure are painful, i took Keflex and they went away. I heard a report on tv lately that said if you take an acid reflux med daily for at least one year you are prone to get more infections, and i have been on Prilosec now for 4 yrs, since my celiac diagnosis. I have had a few infections in the past yr, the saliva gland, and my armpit gland was infected, so I tried to cut back on the Prilosec usage to see if that helps any with the odd infections i've been getting, i try to take only 2 per week now, when i really need it.

I am hoping this will stop all the weird infections i get, no one else i know has ever had these infections, time will tell.

[burdee]

I hope you're taking lots of high dose probiotics during and after treatment with keflex. Many people are exposed to small amounts clostridium difficile bacteria in hospitals. Antibiotics can kill off enough of your good bacteria to allow the c-diff (or other pathogenic bacteria) to rapidly multiply and overwhelm your normal intestinal bacteria. Taking probiotics during and after antibiotic treatment can prevent infection by yet another bacteria in your intestines.

SUE