Difficulty Opening Mouth
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It refers to the restriction of the range of motion of the jaws and difficulty in opening the mouth fully, often referred to as trismus. It can be due to any number of reasons including trauma, infection, or inflammation.

Seek professional care if you experience any of the following symptoms

• Visual field defect

• Impossible to walk normally

• Difficulty breathing / breathlessness

• Abnormal sensation (tingling, prickling)

• Muscle weakness in the limbs

• Unilateral blindness

• Recent weight loss

• Disorder of consciousness

• Numbness of the body

• Altered mental status (delirium)

• Headache

• Seizure attack

• Head injury

• Fever

Generally, Difficulty opening mouth can be related to:

• Spinal Cord Tumor

  A spinal tumor develops within the spinal canal or spine bones. It can be life-threatening and cause permanent disability. Causes include environmental toxins and inherited syndromes like neurofibromatosis 2 and von Hippel-Lindau disease.

• Muscular Dystrophy

  Muscular dystrophy (MD) is a group of diseases causing progressive weakness and muscle wasting. It is caused by mutated genes that normally allow healthy muscles to form. Different types of MD can appear at different ages, ranging from childhood to adulthood, and also present different levels of severity and clinical manifestations.

• Ear Infection

  Infection of the middle ear (area just behind the eardrum) by bacteria or viruses. Contributing factors include nasal obstruction by adenoids and allergic rhinitis. The symptoms can include ear pain or fullness, fevers, and muffled hearing. This is more common in children but can also present in adults. In severe cases, the eardrum may rupture leading to drainage coming out the ear canal.

• Parkinson's Disease
• Acute Tonsillitis / Pharyngitis

Sometimes, Difficulty opening mouth may be related to these serious diseases:

• Tetanus

  A life-threatening infection caused by a bacteria called Clostridium tetani. The bacteria releases toxins that affect the nervous system and cause muscles in the body to contract and "lock up". The bacteria are everywhere in the environment and enter the body through open wounds. Risk factors include being immunosuppressed, not being vaccinated against tetanus (or not keeping up with booster shots), and having open wounds or cuts.

• Cerebral Infarction
• Cerebral Hemorrhage
• Pneumonia (Lower Respiratory Tract Infection)
• Bronchial Asthma