Sudden jaw pain can be alarming and may stem from various causes. Harvard Health and the University of Rochester Medical Center, among other notable institutions, have provided insights into potential reasons and symptoms associated with this discomfort.

One common cause is Temporomandibular Disorders (TMD). Symptoms of TMD typically include jaw discomfort or soreness, often more pronounced in the morning or late afternoon, headaches, pain spreading behind the eyes, in the face, shoulder, neck, or back, earaches or ringing in the ears not linked to an inner ear canal infection, and clicking or popping of the jaw. Individuals with diabetes might also experience facial neuralgias as part of their condition. In rare cases, jaw pain could indicate coronary artery disease, usually accompanied by chest pain or pressure and shortness of breath during physical exertion or emotional stress. Another possible cause is temporal arteritis.

Children’s Hospital of Philadelphia highlights conditions like Mastoiditis and Juvenile Recurrent Parotitis, which could also result in jaw pain. Mastoiditis symptoms include pain behind the ear, ear lobe swelling, recent ear infection, fever, irritability, redness or swelling of the bone behind the ear, drainage from an ear infection, headache, and hearing loss. Juvenile recurrent parotitis symptoms are inflammation of the parotid gland, swelling of the jaw near the ear, pain, redness in the affected jaw area, fever, and recurring inflammation and swelling.

The University of Nebraska discusses external ear disease diagnosis, indicating symptoms such as pruritus in the external ear, discomfort with jaw motion, foul-smelling greenish-yellowish drainage, fever, possible conductive hearing loss, edema, and erythema of canal skin. This condition often follows water activity or ear cleaning and can spread to the cartilage if untreated.

Scott Hoskins from Upstate’s department of physical medicine and rehabilitation explains that tenderness in the jaw, trouble chewing, and aching pain in and around the ear are symptoms of temporomandibular joint (TMJ) dysfunction. TMJ involves pain in the jaw joint, surrounding tissues, and limited jaw movement.

For more detailed information on these conditions, you can refer to the original sources:

Harvard Health
University of Rochester Medical Center
Children’s Hospital of Philadelphia
Children’s Hospital of Philadelphia
University of Nebraska
Upstate’s Department of Physical Medicine and Rehabilitation
Hospital for Special Surgery