1. < Ear, Nose & Throat (ENT)

Please please pls help me find the cause of my hypersalivation

Posted by ajbrown22 @ajbrown22, Oct 12 11:24pm

So I’m going on here because I have no other options, I have had hypersalivation for the last three months and its driven me crazy. Here’s some context, I am a 20-year-old male who exercises almost daily, I don’t drink soda or much processed food. I’m generally a pretty healthy, happy, and chill guy, but this hypersalivation has truly ruined my life completely. It has caused severe stress and anxiety, and it just downright makes me dread waking up in the morning. So it all started when I woke up one day and went to take grandma to the airport and I felt like I couldn’t really talk and my mouth felt weird (I just attributed it to having had woken up early) so I threw in some gum and went about my day, then later that night as I’m chilling on the coach watching a movie I realized my mouth was just filling up incredibly rapidly and I was just confused and then I realized I was hypersalivating for no apparent reason and its been that way since then not stop 24/7 365. I just want to find the cause of my hypersalivation so I can fix it and go about my life again.

My symptoms feel like my mouth just fill right up with water (spit but very serous spit) and If I swallow it’ll just fill right back up again, and when I spit it out it’ll just be very watery spit but I can basically keep spitting into infinity because the production never stops

I have been to 3 ENT doctors who all said everything looked good and I’m in the process of getting a CT scan done on my salivary glands.

I have been to 2 GI doctors who said everything looked good and I got an endoscopy done and all good

I have been to 3 General Doctors who said everything was all good and got blood and urine tests done which also came back perfect

My ideas of Potential causes of hypersalivation are:

-Prior to getting this hypersalivation I water fasted for three full days in which I was chewing gum all day. Somewhere throughout that whole process maybe my parasympathetic system, which controls salivary production got jacked up by something I did and it hasn’t been able to return to its normal state

-The same day the hypersalivation started I also got a tattoo in the upper middle chest that extends to the traps, maybe it caused some nerve damage or affected my nervous system, but I am fairly certain that the hypersalivation started when I woke up and the tattoo was around 2pm

-I do have a very minor overbite and some crowding in my front bottom teeth but overall pretty good teeth and oral hygiene, I did have a dental procedure done about three weeks before the hypersalivation started where apparently I just had a dent in one of my molar and they just did a simple filling on it, but I had no issues the three weeks prior

-I sleep on my stomach/side, not sure if that means anything

-I developed scalloped tongue from the hypersalivation because I have a tendency to move the tongue in a place where it shouldn’t go to try to minimize the rapid accumulation or saliva, also not sure if that means anything either

With all this being said I have no idea what’s wrong with me and the doctors don’t know what’s wrong with me. No, it’s not all in my head. If you saw the shear amounts of saliva, I’m spitting out you’d be surprised. And no, it’s not an anxiety symptom, as yes, this has caused me a great deal of anxiety, but there’s a good chance I went my whole entire life without feeling anxiety before this started, as I’m just not really a anxious guy whatsoever. I would love to know your thoughts and opinions on this, and I’d do literally anything to fix this so please help me out guys.

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Mentor
Sue, Volunteer Mentor | @sepdvm | Oct 15 10:21am

Hello @ajbrown22. That is quite a frustrating situation and so far you have had a good deal of diagnostics. Not finding anything wrong is often a good thing with serious medical issues, but also provides no answers. Has anyone done bloodwork and looked for an autoimmune cause? I would be a bit suspicious of the water fasting.....why do you do this? Also timing of the tattoo is questionable. Is this your first tattoo? An allergic reaction to ink in some way? Infection transferred via tattoo needle? Have the doctors suggested trying an antihistamine to reduce secretions? Both diphenhydramine (Benadryl) and chlorpheniramine ( Chlortrimeton) can cause a dry mouth. I even get dry mouth from Claritin. Would daily dosing help your symptoms while pursuing answers? I would continue to drink more water than usual as a dry mouth stimulates saliva production. Gum chewing if your gum contains Xylitol also stimulates saliva production. Check your routine medications and foods for Xylitol as it is a common sweetener and is used in medications meant to increase salivation like Xylimelts. I have to use it nightly for dry mouth since my cancer surgery removed Parotid salivary gland and radiation fried my mouth.
So there is my veterinary viewpoint, take it for what it is worth. Let us know results of your CT please.

REPLY
1 reply
kdalda75 | @kndaustin71 | Oct 16 10:45am

I have known many a Veterinarian who has known more about the function of the human body, are much more humane in treatment and offer excellent insight !! My suggestion, go to the Big Guys....Jon Hopkins, Clevelend Clinic etc. There they thrive on the complicated and will make lists of differential diagnoses and go with it. If the diagnostics look good they're done.......no further thoughts!

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jackielb | @jackielb | Oct 16 11:30pm

The hypersalivation happened to me out of the blue last year that lasted at the most 3 - 4 months. Never found out the cause. But about two or three months after it cleared I was diagnosed with presbyesophagus (hypomotility esophageal dysphagia). I was put on 30 mg of amitriptyline but really take 20. Specialist said it's due to aging (I'm 63). I too got anxious from hypersalivation. It felt like I was drowning. Before the salivation issue I woke up and my chin was quivering. It happened again in shower a day or two later before the salivation started. Do you have GERD?

REPLY
1 reply
ajbrown22 | @ajbrown22 | Nov 2 2:11pm
In reply to @sepdvm "Hello @ajbrown22. That is quite a frustrating situation and so far you have had a good..." + (show)
@sepdvm

Hello @ajbrown22. That is quite a frustrating situation and so far you have had a good deal of diagnostics. Not finding anything wrong is often a good thing with serious medical issues, but also provides no answers. Has anyone done bloodwork and looked for an autoimmune cause? I would be a bit suspicious of the water fasting.....why do you do this? Also timing of the tattoo is questionable. Is this your first tattoo? An allergic reaction to ink in some way? Infection transferred via tattoo needle? Have the doctors suggested trying an antihistamine to reduce secretions? Both diphenhydramine (Benadryl) and chlorpheniramine ( Chlortrimeton) can cause a dry mouth. I even get dry mouth from Claritin. Would daily dosing help your symptoms while pursuing answers? I would continue to drink more water than usual as a dry mouth stimulates saliva production. Gum chewing if your gum contains Xylitol also stimulates saliva production. Check your routine medications and foods for Xylitol as it is a common sweetener and is used in medications meant to increase salivation like Xylimelts. I have to use it nightly for dry mouth since my cancer surgery removed Parotid salivary gland and radiation fried my mouth.
So there is my veterinary viewpoint, take it for what it is worth. Let us know results of your CT please.

Jump to this post

yea I've done tons of bloodwork and other work and it all came back perfect, and this wasn't my first tattoo i have quite a few and never had any issue with any of them, and yea I've tried anti histamine new and old generation and the new ones don't really do anything and the old ones do help dry the mouth but by the time i take enough to feel any relief im so tired because of the side affect same with anticholinergics they help dry my mouth out a bit but by the time i feel any relief ive basically become blind as they affect vision as a side effect, and i have completely stopped chewing gum for the last 4 months, so im really clueless now as to whats causing it, but im still working with some doctors and it looks like the most probable solution is just going to be botox in the glands and hope for the best

REPLY
1 reply
ajbrown22 | @ajbrown22 | Nov 2 2:15pm
In reply to @jackielb "The hypersalivation happened to me out of the blue last year that lasted at the most..." + (show)
@jackielb

The hypersalivation happened to me out of the blue last year that lasted at the most 3 - 4 months. Never found out the cause. But about two or three months after it cleared I was diagnosed with presbyesophagus (hypomotility esophageal dysphagia). I was put on 30 mg of amitriptyline but really take 20. Specialist said it's due to aging (I'm 63). I too got anxious from hypersalivation. It felt like I was drowning. Before the salivation issue I woke up and my chin was quivering. It happened again in shower a day or two later before the salivation started. Do you have GERD?

Jump to this post

ive gotten an endoscopy done and everything was perfect and also have been on PPis and no change, so i doubt it gerd related, it seems to be a mystery, im going to finish a few tests that i have with a few doctors and hopefully it magically goes away by then, but the most probable solution now might just be botox in the glands so i can improve my quality of life and exactly how you described it not feel like im drowning 24/7 365

REPLY
jackielb | @jackielb | Nov 2 7:21pm

Have u had an esophageal manometry test? Botox was never mentioned to me. It may dissappear as fast as it appeared like me.

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kdalda75 | @kndaustin71 | Nov 3 10:05am

Have you considered traveling to one of the larger teaching institutions ie Mayo, John Hopkins, Duke etc for evaluation and treatment. Sometime the Locals don't have the knowledge base, educational experience and/or interest in dealing with complex cases. Just a thought!

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Mentor
Sue, Volunteer Mentor | @sepdvm | Nov 3 3:34pm
In reply to @ajbrown22 "yea I've done tons of bloodwork and other work and it all came back perfect, and..." + (show)
@ajbrown22

yea I've done tons of bloodwork and other work and it all came back perfect, and this wasn't my first tattoo i have quite a few and never had any issue with any of them, and yea I've tried anti histamine new and old generation and the new ones don't really do anything and the old ones do help dry the mouth but by the time i take enough to feel any relief im so tired because of the side affect same with anticholinergics they help dry my mouth out a bit but by the time i feel any relief ive basically become blind as they affect vision as a side effect, and i have completely stopped chewing gum for the last 4 months, so im really clueless now as to whats causing it, but im still working with some doctors and it looks like the most probable solution is just going to be botox in the glands and hope for the best

Jump to this post

I'm glad there is at least an attempted solution even though the diagnostics have only ruled things out, not found the cause. Keep us updated please.

REPLY
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