Many people have their wisdom teeth removed -- the 3rd molars. If the teeth are not properly removed a patient can leave the dentist or oral surgery office with a permanently numb tongue. The nerve that provides sensation to the tongue, including taste, is called the lingual nerve.
If you have had your wisdom teeth removed and part or all of your tongue is still numb the next day, report the problem to the dentist or oral surgeon who removed your wisdom teeth and consider getting a second opinion from a facility that evaluates lingual nerve damage (the oral surgery departments at UW or OHSU may be a place to start). It is important to have this evaluation right away if you are going to consider lingual nerve repair. The oral surgeons who do the repairs prefer to see patients sooner rather than later, believe there is better success on the repair surgeries with patients they see sooner and that there is a window of opportunity to repair the lingual nerve.
Some patients who have an injured lingual nerve are told that it is a risk of the procedure and was part of the consent form that the patient signed -- that is irrelevant. The issue is whether the procedure was performed negligently or not.
1022
NW Marshall 
<< Blog Home << Previous Page << Home