01/31/2023
What are those bumpy protrusions inside my mouth?
A torus, or tori (plural) is a harmless growth of bone in the mouth covered by soft tissue. Tori tends to grow in three parts of the mouth: The roof of the mouth, inside the lower jaw, or the cheek side of the upper molars. Tori are slow growing, vary in size, and most do not interfere with eating or speech. In fact, many people have tori without even knowing they have them.
Studies have shown that mandibular tori are more common in men than in women and have a genetic influence, father passing this condition to their sons or certain ethnicities. But there are other environmental factors such as bruxism (grinding of the teeth), trauma to the jaw, vitamin deficiencies or dietary causes.
What should you do if you discover this growth? First, don’t panic, be informed. It can be concerning to discover a lump in your mouth. Make an appointment with your dentist for evaluation, diagnosis, and necessary treatment. It is likely that your dentist may recommend doing nothing at all unless the tori interferes with placement of a denture, you are experiencing throat or jaw pain, or inflammation affecting eating or speaking.
