Dental experts know that most patients have never undergone any type of surgery before. And if teeth extractions is a patient’s first surgical experience, they will spend a lot of time teaching patients what to and not to do after this General dentistry treatments. Here’s some of the do’s and don’ts to help you prepare for your procedure.
After the extraction, here’s what you need to do:
Take pain medications. Take your pain medications as prescribed by your oral health professional. Do not skip the dose so that you won’t feel additional complications even if you think you are doing ok.
Take some time off after the procedure. Expect that the extraction site will be numb for quite some time; therefore you are advised to take a rest. If you’ve had IV sedation, you’ll likely feel hazy; therefore you are not allowed to go back to work. Instead, use this time to take a rest and recover.
Watch what you eat. Tooth extractions will leave your jawbone exposed. As the blood clot naturally forms over the exposed tissue it can get easily damaged especially if you eat foods that are too hard, rough, or crunchy. As the clot is forming, stick to eating only soft foods like soups, juices, smoothies, bananas, eggs, etc. until your specialist tells you to return to your regular diet.
Rinse your mouth with warm water to cleanse out the remaining food.
After the extraction, DO NOT do the following:
Do not brush, floss, or use mouthwash until your specialist advises it. This might seem like a counterintuitive advice as brushing after every meal can get rid of food particles in your mouth, but if you brush on the site where the tooth has been extracted too soon, you’ll risk dislodging the blood clot. Allowing the blood clot to form helps with your recovery and avoids dry socket.
Use straw. When you suck water from the straw, there is a high chance that the blood clot can get dislodged; thus, causing dry socket. You don’t want to experience the painful effects of dry socket. If you have to drink, drink small amounts of liquids at a time.
Smoke cigarettes after the surgery. Similar to the sucking action you do when drinking through a straw, smoking cigarettes can also dislodge the blood clot. Additionally, cigarettes contain harmful toxins that can restrict blood vessels which makes it harder for your mouth to heal.
Read Dry socket issues after tooth removal.
Be Well Prepared for Recovery
It is a crucial task for dental professionals to make sure that those who have undergone tooth extraction are well prepared for recovery. Aside from the list of dos and don’ts above, they will also provide post-operative instruction unique to your case. Follow these directions carefully to prevent infection and promote faster proper healing.
See the Cost of Extraction.
