Extractions

Oral Care

Make sure that you take real good care of the tissue at the time of recovery. A clean mouth will speed up the healing process.

Allow the surgical dressing ( if any ) protecting the tissue to become stiff and do not drink anything hot or warm before three to four hours.

Post-operative Care For A Tooth Extraction

The recovery holiday lasts around one week to a fortnight, and there might be some swelling for the initial two days.

An anesthetic is applied before the surgery to make your lips, tooth, and tongue sensationless – so that you do not feel any pain. You must not chew anything for at least two hours after the surgery and wait till the numbness has gone completely.

Do not consume painkillers on an empty stomach to avoid nausea.

You can also keep an ice pack on the swelling to soothe the pain, put it for twenty minutes and maintain another twenty minutes interval before applying it again.

A blood clot will appear where the tooth has been extracted and this clot plays a significant role in the recovery process.  Do not touch the extraction pit with your tongue or fingers, do not drink anything using a straw, and do not spit forcefully – as all these activities will disturb the clot.

If you have allergies or suffering from an existing upper respiratory condition, then keep your sinus medicines ready and do not sneeze or blow your nostrils vigorously – as it could remove the clot from its position which in turn hampers the recovery.

Do not eat, smoke, and wash your mouth on the day of the surgery.

You can rinse the operated area gently with a mouthwash or lukewarm saline water after a day.  Mix half tablespoon of salt with one cup of lukewarm water, swish the solution around the wound and spit with care. Do this twice or thrice daily for seven days after the surgery.

Take medicines as prescribed and complete their course even if all the symptoms and infections vanish.

Do not engage in hectic activities twenty-four hours after the surgery and relax as much as possible.

Start eating after the numbness has gone entirely, and restrict your diet to yogurt, ice-cream, soft soups, soft-cooked eggs and other non-chewable foods for the initial two days. Drink at least eight glasses of fruit juice or water daily.

Keep your head in an upright position with the help of a pillow to minimize bleeding. Gauge sponzes will be given to you so that you can cover the extraction pit.

Change the pads whenever the need arises and use them till the bleeding stops completely. And keep biting a moist tea-bag for twenty minutes. Feel free to call us if the bleeding increases or does not cease eventually.

Initially, you will be left with a strange feeling because of the space left by the extracted tooth. New gum tissue and bone will fill this gap gradually.

Swelling

A little amount of swelling is normal.

Put an ice pack on your face on the day of the surgery for twenty minutes to minimize the swelling, and maintain another twenty minutes interval before applying it again.

Rinse with lukewarm saline water frequently, if the swelling started to appear after a day.

Bruising And Bleeding

A negligible amount of bleeding will continue for a day or two after the surgery.

Get in touch with your doctor, if the wound continues to bleed, or the bleeding gets more profuse.

You may also find trace amount of blood on your pillow in the morning post-operation.

Eating

Do not drink or eat anything warm three to four hours after the surgery and do not consume any hot liquid during that day.

Avoid hard-to-chew or spicy foods and limit your intake to mushy items with high nutritious value.

Do not forget to eat well-balanced meals during the treatment, as they will aid and speed up your recovery.

Food supplements ( e.g., Ensure, Nutriment, Sego, Carnation Instant Breakfast ) are strongly suggested if you are unable to eat regular foods.

And last but not the least, strictly no smoking.

Call your doctor if you have any queries or issues.

Post-op Instructions for an Extraction