Woman opened her mouth to eat pani puri, couldn’t close it until doctors intervened!

Chetana Belagere

Dec 03, 2025

Health

Health

Little did a 42-year-old woman from UP know that a quick pani puri break would end in a medical emergency. A single bite left her jaw suddenly locked, and she couldn’t close her mouth after that.

Health

The panicked family rushed her to a nearby district hospital, but the staff were unable to reposition her jaw. 

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Doctors attribute such episodes to a dysfunction of the jaw joint, known as Temporomandibular Joint Disorder (TMD), or, in severe events, a frank dislocation of the jaw. 

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If the mouth opens too wide — for instance, to gulp down a large pani puri bite — the cartilage and ligaments inside the joint can slip out of their normal alignment. 

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 If this displacement becomes severe, the jaw may “lock,” rendering it impossible to close the mouth. In some cases, the joint may even dislocate, requiring urgent realignment.