Wisdom Teeth Removed Using Anesthesia. Have Sore Uvula And Swallowing Difficulty. Worrisome

Posted on Tue, 18 Dec 2012

Medically reviewed by Ask A Doctor - 24x7 Medical Review Team

Tue, 18 Dec 2012 Answered on

Tue, 8 Jan 2013 Last reviewed on

Question : i recently had an operation to remove four wisdom teeth. i had the operation under general anesthetic. Ive dealt with it quite well and the surgical sites are healing very clean and well. the only issue is my uvula. after the operation it was very swollen and was long enough to reach the back of my tongue slightly down my throat. now it isnt as swollen but ive been having alot of trouble drinking swallowing and eating is basically non exhistent. i try my best to drink quickly so i can get through the pain faster. its burns and stings everytime the uvula touches the sides of my throat or tonsils when i drinks swallow saliva or try to eat food. sometimes it just hurts randomly.
is it hurting because i had a tube down my throat? is this common after operations for people to have a very sore and swollen uvula? the end of my uvula is very hard and its has a strange colour to it. not sure if its black or a very dark purple, the colour does not cover the entire uvula its a little more erratic in placement.

Answered by Dr. Naveen (2 hours later)

Hi

Thanks for the query

The elongated uvula is because of the placement of the endotracheal tube for the purpose of induction during anesthesia.

This is quite common and does happen with many of the individuals who undergo surgeries under general anesthesia. Do not worry! This will clear off after sometime. The bluish discoloration is because of bleeding inside the uvula secondary to the trauma it has undergone during insertion of the tube.

The elongation is because of the swelling, which makes the soft uvula heavy and hang towards gravity.

My advice to you is to take some anti-inflammatory medicines such as ibuprofen or diclofenac to reduce the pain and swelling. Drink plenty of warm water, this will reduce the pain and swelling over the uvula. Try not taking hot or cold food and beverages, avoid smoking and consumption of alcohol. With the above measures you will definitely be alright.

Hope I have answered your query; I will be available for the follow-up queries.

Regards
Dr. Naveen Kumar N.
ENT and Head & Neck Surgeon

Above answer was peer-reviewed by : Dr. Chakravarthy Mazumdar