Misdiagnosed for 10 years

Today a 70-year-old man came to clinic accompanied by his wife. During the interview process, the male patient could not speak. His wife informed us that he had a “stroke” 10 years ago, and has not spoken since. He can only make slight grunting noises when asked questions. Even though he was not in any orthopedic pain, we decided to evaluate him for his post-stroke symptoms. During Bac Si Ha’s examination, the stroke diagnosis was quite suspect. During further physical exam, it was discovered that this 70 old male had a dislocated temporal mandibular joint, making it near impossible to move his jaw to form any words.  A few injections into the joint to numb the pain, then 5 minutes of manipulating and repositioning his TMJ, the patient first screamed in pain, which was a good sign. Immediately after, he started saying small, albeit soft words. The look on his wife’s face was one of astonishment. Before he left the medical room, he could hold a brief conversation with us. It will take a few months for his speech to return to normal, but we believe he will make a full recovery.

The look on my face was one of amazement. Having thought this was a post-stroke victim, to treating him and making him talk again after 10 years is a small miracle.

His wife is grateful today; We hope she remains grateful after he regains his 100% ability to speak. FYI: They are happily married!!!!!