The ironic thing is that during my whole ordeal both my fiancée and I contacted the Oral Surgeon a total of four times to let them know what was going on. It wasn’t that we were looking to blame anyone for what was happening. We just needed suggestions on how to resolve the problem.

The general response I got from the Oral Surgeon’s office was “This is not our fault, and has nothing to do with your Wisdom Tooth Removal.” The ironic thing is if you have looked online (which you have since you are on my site.) you would realize this is just not true.

There are multiple posts and threads out on the net with people relating their story of getting the hiccups from having their Wisdom Teeth removed.

Now I understand that in the litigious world we live in people are not likely to own up to something. But I feel that as a medical professional it is your sworn duty to help someone with any medical knowledge you may have about their condition.

Placing blame is not the issue. The issue is helping a person get their life back to normal. I refuse to believe the Oral Surgeon had never received a call about this before. The fact is that they kept repeating “This is unrelated to your oral surgery. We are not responsible.” Instead they should have been offering suggestions about how to deal with the issue.

Now “Persistent Hiccups” may be unusual as a result of Oral Surgery. Many of the posts I have read online are people sharing stories about short bouts of hiccups after their surgery.

The bottom line is that people do in fact get the hiccups from a having Oral Surgery performed. So why is this?

Instances of Hiccups After Having Wisdom Teeth Removed & Oral Surgery

In a post on the Mac Rumors forum someone was discussing their concerns about getting their Wisdom Teeth removed. Someone followed up with the comment:

• … However I apparently am in the 5% of people who get hiccups from the pain medicine I was prescribed. It was fun to watch my coworkers go insane for two days as I kept hiccuping…

Were my hiccups caused by Pain Medication? They still persisted for four days after the medication was gone.

In another post on the Dental Problems message board a user writes:

• … I just had my wisdom teeth removed Friday afternoon, and ever since that night, I have had constant hiccups. I do mean constant. It happens every 5 seconds whenever I am up and walking around…literally. The only time it isn’t happening is for about 10 minutes after I wake up from a short, vicodin-induced nap. I usually hiccup myself to sleep. This is so annoying. Has it happened to anyone else? I’ve done internet searches and can’t find hiccups as a side effect from the surgery. Help!!…

This experience seems to run contrary to the assumption above that the hiccups are related to the pain medication since this person states the only time their hiccups go away is when they take their pain medication and go to sleep.

Now in all fairness I have read other experiences stating that when a person falls asleep (whether its natural sleep or drug induced sleep) that their hiccups go away until they wake up.

This bit of information makes the condition seem neurological in a way as the symptoms subside when the brain is basically “turned off”. Yet they come back as soon as a person is conscious again.

Side Notes on Hiccups Related to Oral Surgery & Wisdom Tooth Removal

Another point to note is that my hiccups started immediately upon coming out of Surgery. At this point I had not yet taken pain medication except for what was administered through the IV.

I have also spoken with several doctors who attend and assist with surgeries at the hospital when they are not working at the clinic. When I asked these doctors about the possibility of hiccups as a result of general anesthesia they all mentioned they have never seen a patient come out of a hospital surgery with the hiccups.

This might be a similar case like with the Oral Surgeon where this does happen and maybe these doctors were just not aware of it.

In any case, if you are on this site you know that Hiccups DO occur as a result of Oral Surgery. There’s no point in convincing ourselves of something we have experienced firsthand. What we need to do is find out why they occur and how to stop them once this has happened.

I will try to share more information as I find it, and any theories I come up with through online research.

The patient, Shane Shafer, was an older man who was suffering from a case of intractable hiccups following a stroke he suffered two years earlier.

The doctors concluded the intractable hiccups were related to the way Mr. Shafer’s brain cells communicated with the vagus nerve describing an “aberrant connection” following his stroke.

Through the use of an implant the doctors were able to stimulate the electrical impulses in the vagus nerve of the patient which caused the hiccups to cease.

I find this to be a very interesting article in the fact that I have stated time and again my feeling that the hiccups have a neurological root. This is apparent in my own life having been diagnosed with tourette’s syndrome as a child. But more recently in my wife’s life when her grandfather suffered a stroke and developed persistent hiccups for several days following the stroke.

This article is more of an informational piece that offers some great insight into possible cause and effect aspects of the hiccups, but by no means a mainstream cure.

Read the article in its entirety on Eurekalert.

The thing I found most interesting was the preface to the article that stated:

Science is still unsure exactly what causes hiccups as well as how to cure them. So what exactly have they learned in their studies?

This is a theme we have discussed on cure-hiccups.com many times as doctors and dentists commonly range from disinterested, to flat out unhelpful.

The article does not form any conclusions, or offer any additional cures we have not already seen, but it does offer interesting details regarding the hiccups and various theories about why people get them.

The app is $0.99 and offers a good collection of hiccup cures and remedies in case you are on the road or can’t get online.

Many of the cures are similar to the ones I have outlined on the site, except these are easy to take with you anywhere you go. I also know that even though I spend a lot of time researching hiccup cures, it’s easy for me to forget common cure methods when I am stressed out by a bout of hiccups that just won’t go away.

The app does a good job of offering additional information about the hiccups as well as detailed illustrations on each remedy that is recommended.

If you are an iPhone app junkie like myself or suffering from a chronic bout of hiccups the For Sure Hiccup Cure is a great app to have on hand.

With that in mind, I find any information or patterns people notice interesting and worth making a note of.

Several of the points outlined in the article are interesting in how they relate to persistent hiccups. In one example the author discusses hiccups as a result of GERD or “Acid Reflux”. Where my persistent hiccups seemed to causes an acid reflux reaction.

This is an interesting read and touches on additional points that I did not cover in my post asking “Why do people hiccup?”

For the full article checkout the post on Asianet: Why do People Get Hiccups

The article outlines Remedies including holding your breath, green cardamom, crushed ice, yogurt and more. As I mentioned before they all seem to be pretty main stream remedies but worth the potential relief if you are suffering from a case of persistent hiccups.

Read the whole article in its entirety on Natural-HomeRemedies.

The Airline Steward Method of Curing the Hiccups

Today we are going to discuss another breathing method that is used to cure the hiccups. This method is a little more unique than some of the other methods I have discussed so far because it was originally used by Airline Stewards to help cure hiccups while in flight.

This method can actually be performed anywhere so it is not specific to just those who are on a plane. However it does require that you are seated in a chair to perform the exercise correctly.

(Be careful when performing this exercise if you have a bad back or chronic back problems.)

Airline Steward Method to Cure the Hiccups

1. The first thing you need to do is find a chair with a straight back. A standard desk or office chair while usually work, but make sure the back of the chair is straight.
2. Now sit down in the chair and press your back fully against the back of the chair.
3. Take your arms and cross the over your chest as though you are assuming the “crash” position on an airplane. Once you have your arms cross bend forward into a tucked position with your nose pointing towards your knees.
4. Take a moment to let your body relax, and allow yourself to get comfortable.
5. Now slowly apply pressure and squeeze your arms as though you are trying to force the air out of your body.
6. Once you have exhaled the air from your lungs hold your breath for 5 to 10 seconds and then release.
7. Stay in the tucked position and continue to repeat the exercise 4 to 5 times and then slowly sit back up.

At this point your hiccups should be gone. If they are not be patient and try some of the other great hiccup cures I have listed on the site.

Diaphragm Stimulation Exercise for Curing Hiccups

Let’s take a look at another good breathing exercise to help you cure the hiccups. This exercise uses a combination of controlled breathing and visualization to stimulate the diaphragm and cure your hiccups.

This is another good breathing exercise to practice as it promotes good mental health, stress relief and lowers blood pressure.

By nature the hiccups are occurring because your diaphragm is working against your body instead of with it. This exercise is designed to get the two working together in order to cure your hiccups.

How to Stimulate Your Diaphragm to Cure the Hiccups

1. First take several slow deep breaths. While you are doing this focus on the feeling you have in your abdomen.
2. As you take in a slow deep breath feel you chest and lungs expand as allow your stomach muscles to relax.
3. While doing this you should feel the muscle wall between your chest and abdomen drop down.
4. Breath out, and as you do focus on the feeling of your chest contacting. As you do this, tighten and pull up your stomach muscles. This will raise your stomach wall.
5. The best way to visualize this is by imagining that will you are breathing you need to make space for the air in your chest. When you breathe out visualize how this space contracts within your body.

This is the basic method used for controlled breathing by singers, martial artists and yoga practitioners as well as many other sports and hobbies that utilize controlling your breath.

Practice this exercise for several minutes and you should notice that your hiccups have been cured. If your hiccups have not gone away by this point be patient and try another exercise on the site to help cure your hiccups.

Hold Your Breath & Reset Your Diaphragm to Stop Hiccups

This next method is another simple breathing exercise you can do anywhere to help cure the hiccups. These are good techniques to know because a lot of the time the hiccups occur at the worst possible times.

Whether you are in a meeting, or stuck on a plane breathing exercises allow you to try and cure your hiccups without needing any supplies or even needing to move from where you are sitting.

Resetting Your Diaphragm to Cure Hiccups

This method is simple and effective so follow the steps below to learn how to reset your diaphragm.

1. First breathe in as much air as you possibly can. Take one slow, long inhale until it feels as though your lungs are completely full.
2. Continue to breathe in until it is impossible for you to take in anymore air.
3. Once you have done this, start to breathe normally.
4. The act of doing this should reset your diaphragm and cure your hiccups.

Continue to do this until your hiccups go away.

If your hiccups still persist be patient and try some of the other cures outlined on the website.

Cure the Hiccups with this Ten Second Breath Technique

Another great breathing exercise that you can do anytime and anywhere is the 10 Second Breath technique.

This method is yet another variation of some of the other breathing exercises I have outlined on the site. It is good to have a lot of options for breathing exercises as they can help with other things aside from curing the hiccups.

Some examples are:

• Improving overall physical health, and mental well being.
• Helping you lower your blood pressure.
• Alleviating stress or tension and the conditions associated with it. (Headaches, Fatigue, Depression, High Blood Preasure.)

The Ten Second Breathing Method for Curing the Hiccups

1. Start by holding your breath for as long as you can.
2. If you hiccup while you are initially holding your breath, start over and try holding your breath again without hiccupping.
3. Doing this will build up CO2 in your lungs but you should still be able to hold your breath as this occurs.
4. Hold the breath for as long as possible without hiccupping and then slowly exhale while counting to 10 in your head.
5. Make your exhale last the entire 10 seconds while you count.
6. Make sure you do not take a breath during these ten seconds. This period is purely for exhaling a long slow breath.
7. Once you have done this go back to step #1 and repeat the exercise until your hiccups are gone.

This breathing exercise should help you to cure your hiccups. It may take a couple minutes for the exercise to be effective. Continue to repeat the step above until your hiccups are gone.

If this method does not cure your hiccups there are still many other exercises on the site that will help you get rid of the hiccups. Stay calm and continue to work on another exercise until your hiccups are gone.