Isolated Hypoglossal Nerve Palsy due to Infected Impacted Tooth

Abstract

Case of isolated hypoglossal nerve palsy is an extremely rare condition. There are several causes that can be attributed to it. We present a case where a patient presented herself with swelling on the right side of her cheek extending to the floor of the mouth, with unilateral right hypoglossal nerve palsy. Removal of the impacted tooth resulted in the improvement of function of the hypoglossal nerve. The transient isolated hypoglossal nerve palsy could have been due to the infected impacted tooth. Therefore, the dentist or doctors coming across with isolated hypoglossal nerve palsy should consider the infected impacted tooth as the differential diagnosis.