Cysts Under Tongue

If you've ever had cysts under tongue (I pray you haven't), you'll know what kind of torture they are capable of unleashing on you. For some they might cause a lot of unbearable pain such that every time they eat they have shudders of ache running through their bodies. For some, it might not cause pain but lead to a lot of discomfort instead - after all a small boil or lump under tongue that one can constantly feel, can't really be all that much great to bear. In the following article we will be dealing with the causes and treatment for cysts under tongue. So if there is a doubt about this issue, read the following article and you'll have your answers soon.

Cysts Under Tongue - Causes

What are the causes of cysts under tongue? Let's get into a little detail about how and why they come about. The formation of these (sometimes) red cysts under tongue is closely related to the functioning of the salivary glands, the malfunction, rather. The salivary glands are responsible for keeping our mouths salivated and constantly supplying it with liquid. Saliva is important to keep the mouth wet and to help in digestion as well. And there are times when the salivary glands are affected which causes them to stop functioning effectively and this leads to the formation of cysts under tongue. Let us see what these conditions are.

• When there is a sudden blockage of salivary glands which leads to obstruction and causes the cysts to erupt.
• There might be an injury to the salivary glands because of an accidental bite on the lip or cheeks on your part. This can cause thicker and excessive saliva or a stone to form and lead to cysts under tongue.

The stones that are formed in the salivary tract block the flow of saliva and lead to the gland swelling. This causes dehydration in the mouth and the condition is more commonly referred to as sialolithiasis or salivary gland stones.

These cysts are also known as ranula. The name is derived from frogs because the condition is similar to what frogs do with their throats when they croak.

Cysts Under Tongue - Treatment

Many times, the cysts will go away on their own, especially in the case of a minor injury to the salivary glands like a bite on the cheeks or lips. But for times when these cannot be healed on their own and it results in the recurrent formation of cysts, then what is one to do? Then a surgery seems to be the only solution. Let us see what are the conditions in which a surgery becomes imperative.

• When the ducts are blocked. Like in the case of formation of stones.
• A previous infection in the gland leads to more similar infections and the formation of cysts.
• If there is no coordination between the mouth muscles and the nerves of the gland then it can result in the formation of excess saliva which cannot be corrected.
• When there are repeated infections in the salivary glands, which lead to scarring and inflammation.

When these conditions are noticed, surgery is the only option that is left as a course of treatment for the cysts under tongue. And that is what one does in case of blocked salivary gland treatment.

The surgery involves either removing the object that blocks the duct so that the gland starts functioning normally. Or it involves removing a part or a major chunk of the gland so that it begins to start functioning again. There will be soreness after the surgery, that is a given. But it will help for the formation of the cysts under tongue to completely stop. Rarely will these cysts be cancerous, in which case a surgery is the only option left.

Now that you know what and how cysts under tongue are formed and how one can go about treating them, if you ever have them, you can go visit your doctor immediately and administer the right kind of treatment for them.