Whats this swelling in my gum/cheek?

Joined
Apr 16, 2024
Messages
28
Yesterday as soon as I woke up I had a deep dull pain between my lower back molar and my ear. It was intermittent all day. I assumed it was TMJ and didn't fuss.
Today I woke up and the pain was gone but I've got this weird swelling on the gum behind my back molar, and my cheek is puffy???
It doesn't hurt a lot but I'm really scared it might be an infection?
Obviously it's a bank holiday so I can't see a dentist for at least 4 days.

EDIT: I will add I was probably too aggressive when I brushed it yesterday.

(the back tooth is quite stained and I need to book a scaling)
 

Attachments

  • IMG_20260403_123520.jpg
    IMG_20260403_123520.jpg
    99.1 KB · Views: 30
  • Screenshot_2026-04-03-17-51-05-716_com.miui.gallery.jpg
    Screenshot_2026-04-03-17-51-05-716_com.miui.gallery.jpg
    61.7 KB · Views: 31

MattKW

Verified Dentist
Joined
Mar 18, 2018
Messages
2,221
Solutions
153
Looks just like cheek fat to me. It isn't helped by the outward tilt of your 2nd molar, but that's just your anatomy. Other possibility could be the presence of an unerupted wisdom tooth pushing the 2nd molar outwards. Not urgent.
 

Vote:

Ask a Question

Want to reply to this thread or ask your own question?

You'll need to choose a username for the site, which only take a couple of moments. After that, you can post your question and our members will help you out.

Ask a Question

Members online

No members online now.

Forum statistics

Threads
8,786
Messages
26,291
Members
16,470
Latest member
micelvmur

Latest Threads

Top