What are the symptoms of a salivary gland stone?
Dr. Gillespie: The symptoms of a salivary stone are mainly swelling of the gland. We have four major salivary glands – two in the cheek area and two underneath the jaw line. People who have salivary stones will typically experience sudden swelling of their gland with pain when they eat a meal. This can also cause a fever and sometimes foul tasting drainage into the mouth. Is there any danger to these stones? Dr. Gillespie: There are cases where it can cause infection that can spread outside of the gland and into the neck. If that occurs, it can potentially be life threatening by causing a blockage of the airway. What’s the traditional treatment of salivary gland stones? Dr. Gillespie: We always start with what we consider to be conservative non-invasive measures. Small stones will actually pass out of the natural drainage pathway of the gland on their own. We have patients drink lots of water and we have them massage their glands. We also have them suck on sour candies to produce more
