Taurus or tauri surgery

[PolkaNoble]

A Taurus (plural Tauri) is a growth of extra bone on the jaw or roof of the mouth. If they are not pretty big you might not notice them, since they occur inside the teeth in the bottom of the mouth and typically grow slowly. They are commonly removed when a patient needs dentures fitted as they get in the way and make the dentures impossible to fit.

It seems to be routine surgery for a DDS oral surgeon. They open the lining of the mouth, remove the extra bone and close. They say there are no big nerves to be cut and do not mention complications.

I have no tooth problems, but my 3 tauri must be removed in the next couple of months because the 2 in the bottom of the mouth are about 1/8 of an inch from growing together and causing major problems. I might as well have the one on the roof of the mouth removed also unless a reason is presented to not do so.

The thread on Wisdom teeth reminded me that someone on this forum may have experience on the surgery and recovery and effects on playing. Worrying about this may be irrational, but there is VERY little information on the internet- at least the way I was searching- and I have yet to find an oral surgeon who knows about how the surgery affects brass embouchures.

[PolkaNoble]

Tauri removal

The following is my personal experience and should not be taken as advice to anyone who may have a similar condition. Statistics show that between 10% and 20% of the general population eventually get tauri, but most are not nearly the size of mine and only become a problem when they must be fitted for dentures. Also, for many wind players, it might not develop into a problem until after they have stopped playing.

I was formerly concerned about the possibility of some nerve damage that would affect my playing if I had the procedure, and the probability of lessened tongue function and closing off a salivary gland if I did not. The advice of the dental surgeon and several dentists was that there was very little chance of nerve damage, considering the locations of the tauri. My internist actually advised the procedure be done by an oral surgeon since they do this stuff every day.

Thursday morning (July 2nd) I had the 2 lower tauri removed (then upper one will probably never cause problems and was not removed) and I was on my way home shortly after noon. It has now been 24 hours. Perhaps a little early for an evaluation, but I am optimistic!

Thus far I have ALL feeling back in the affected area and very little pain, but the area is tender and it will be for two weeks or so. I am taking a small amount of pain medication. The tongue and salivary gland is free and I have every hope for a full recovery and some improved function in the tongue. Overall, for me, it was not nearly as painful as having wisdom teeth removed, and LESS risk of nerve and jaw damage

SO— No playing for two weeks at least— maybe not for over a month. When I do play again there should be no negative effect on playing and perhaps a slight increase in playing comfort and tongue function. Otherwise all is well.

[PolkaNoble]

This is my last post on this subject. I hope it adds to the knowledge base.

THIS IS NOT MEDICAL ADVICE; IT IS JUST MY PERSONAL EXPERIENCE.

Tomorrow will mark 3 weeks since surgery. I began limited practicing, mostly on the Rudy, last week on Thursday, July 16th, 2 weeks after surgery. Some places in the mouth were tender, but not sore. It gets a little better each day.

It is too early to tell for sure if I will actually play better, but some physical things about playing are easier than they were before the surgery.

1. I anticipated that tonguing would be easier and more comfortable, and it is. I did not really expect anything else other than to avoid deterioration in tongue function and avoid an “emergency” as the tauri grew together and tongue function was further restricted and the salivary gland was covered.

2. To my surprise, I have found a marked improvement in executing intervals both tongued and (ESPECIALLY) slurred. Rochut/Bordogni is MUCH easier now. To me this is a BIG thing!

3. My wife commented immediately on improved tone. I thought it might be, also.

Not that I’m THAT old, but in the last few years I have often thought that the increasing difficulty of executing clean slurred (and to some extent tongued) intervals was just age related. Perhaps related to breath support, though I had not noticed any wind or air problems in other aspects of my life.

I now have a theory that removing growths that amounted in volume to 5 or 6 pieces of bubble gun stuck to the floor of the mouth gave me much more control over the interior shape of the mouth and the volume of air it contained, as well as freeing the tongue in some unanticipated ways.

Due to the slow growth, the incremental effects and the source of the problems were masked until the tauri were removed.

[Doug Elliott]

Thank you for posting this. I had heard of them before, but it's great to get first-hand information.

[skeath]

FYI --

There is a significant difference in recovery time, based on the location of the taurus and the nature of the surgery. Evidently, one size does not fit all. I just had a tooth extracted (today), and associated tauri removed, and my surgeon feels confidant that I will be able to play a concert in 6 days. The way I feel now, I could do it tonight (but I won't).

A common issue that delays the restart of playing is the possibility of "dry-socket", but my surgery was on an upper molar. My surgeon says dry-socket only happens on lower teeth, so there is no danger in my starting to play soon, other than tenderness.

Bad news: my surgeon plays Saxophone
Good news: he is Czech, and grew up going to polka fests