He went to hospital for a sore jaw. Surgeons had to extract 526 teeth

A 7-year-old boy complaining of jaw pain was found to have 526 teeth inside his mouth, according to the hospital in India where he was treated. Photo / 123rf

A 7-year-old boy who complained of jaw pain was found to have 526 teeth inside his mouth, according to a hospital in India.

The boy was taken to a hospital in Chennai because of swelling and pain around his molars in his lower right jaw.

When doctors took an X-ray they were left stunned after finding a sac embedded in his lower jaw filled to the brim with "abnormal teeth", Dr Prathiba Ramani said.

Ramani's team took four to five hours to empty the sac where found hundreds of teeth inside.

"There were a total of 526 teeth ranging from 0.1mm to 15mm. Even the smallest piece had a crown, root, and enamel coat indicating it was a tooth," she told CNN.

An x-ray of the boy's mouth shows the sac. Photo / CNN

The boy was released from hospital three days later and made a full recovery.

Doctors said the boy was suffering from a very rare condition called compound composite odontoma.

His parents say he developed an issue in his jaw at 3, but wouldn't sit still long enough for doctors to take a look.

Doctors do not know how he got it, but believe it may be genetic or it could be due to environmental factors like radiation.