OK, My first question on the forum:

Exposed necotising jaw bone:

I understand this may be a common side effect of oral radiation therapy. Has anyone else gone through this? I have lots of questions about it. The surgeon is recommeding debridment & antibiotics. Is it effective? Is it painful?

Right now my husband has no pain, & had no idea he had this problem until he saw the surgeon/dentist. I just want us to be prepared for what's to come ahead.

Thanks in advance,
Megan

That treatment will help, but if you combine it with HBO treatments it works much better.

Megan,

The surgeon will probably want to remove some of the exposed bone and try to get the edges of the "skin" to cover over the underlying bone. It shouldn't be too uncomfortable and is going to get healing started. HBO treatments, as Brian said, will help the bone to heal quicker.

Jerry

Could this cause your sinus area to swell if there is a problem?

Yes, if there is an infection present, swelling would be likely.

Thanks for the replies. The surgeon said HBO treatments would be the next step if this procedure doesn't work. I know everybody is different but is this something that can progress rapidly? The Doc said two months on the antibotic.

The oral surgeon is also a dentist. I just hope he's being aggressive enough.

I was wondering how you remember how to spell your name? LOL It sure is a biggy and I have trouble with Jim. I hope you hubby gets taken care of soon and you can relax a little.

That's funny Jim. You can call me Megan. Somewhat easier to spell. Lemon Verbena is a favorite herb of mine.

Relaxing is hard.
The medical professional has not left me with a sense of relaxation at all. More like a feeling of.... I'd better educate myself fast or I could miss some pretty big mistakes.

The oral surgeon was massively unprepared for our last visit. He came in & told my husband he needed a a post radiation CT scan when we were actually there to get the results of a CT scan done three days earlier.

He then announced that my husband needed to have flouride trays made, but my husband has been using fluoride trays for three months based on this doctor's recommendation.

It's very discouraging when the doctor not only doesn't seem to remember you, but hasn't read your chart before you came in. Like being a cog in the medical wheel.

That's why I wonder if he's being aggressive enough in response to this problem.

Megan.

You deserve better than having a physician consult with you without any preparation and obviously, this one had not looked at anything. I'm not sure I could be diplomatic if presented with the same situation...I know you don't want to p**s off the doc but I think he should be challenged. Perhaps another doctor/facility is in order.

I am always reassured at Bill's consultations and checkups because the exam room doors are left open while we are waiting and we can observe the docs looking at Bill's charts for several minutes before seeing us. I don't expect these CCC physicians to remember everything about our case, but I do expect that they understand the progression and current status (at least to the last visit) before walking into the room.

You definitely have reason to question whether Jim is getting all that he deserves.

Deb