After tooth extraction
- Do not drink, eat, rinse or smoke for 2 to 3 hour after the tooth extration.
- Smoking before or after surgery/extraction increases the risk for complications in the form of dry-socket, which is a inflammation of the bone where the tooth was extracted from.
- After the extraction we place a compress – a walnut-sized piece of gauze with bactericidal ointment – over the wound. This compress must be kept firmly in place for 20 minutes after the treatment.
- If bleeding persists, replace the compress and keep it firmly in place for another 20 minutes. Repeat until bleeding subsides. The compress will become bloody, and the blood will be thinned by saliva, often making it seem that there is more blood than what is necessarily the case.
- Do not rinse with water if you have trouble stopping the bleeding.
- Contact us or an emergency room if you fail to stop the bleeding with the gauze. Remember to inform us if you have taken any painkillers that contain acetylsalicylic acid (Dispril or Aspirin).
- Try to eat and drink only temperated and soft food for the first 24 hours after the treatment. Hard or hot/cold food and drink may be painful to ingest and may hurt the wound. Food requiring lots of chewing or food containing lots of fiber may settle in the wound and irritate the wound.
- Avoid hard excercise the first 24 hours. Increased blood pressure can increase the risk of bleeding.
- Let the wound rest to speed up the healing process.
- Avoid forceful brushing of the area around the wound the first couple of days, but do clean the teeth around the area with a soft toothbrush and floss. Rinse with salt water 3-4 times a day during the healing process, if you can.
- If you desire a more potent rinsing agent, you may use Corsodyl or Hextrile which you can buy at the drugstire. Remember to read the accompanying leaflet.
- If you are experiencing tenderness or pain, you can use painkillers. We recommend 3-6 X 400 mg Ibux the first 24 hours. If the pain persists, you can supplement with 500 mg paracetamol up to 3 times a day. Pain relief the first 24 hours is more effective than waiting until the pain increases. Remember to read the accompanying leaflet thoroughly.
- Be patient. The wound can be tender for 2 weeks after the extraction.
- If you experience that the pain disappears only to worsen again, contact us and we’ll make sure that everything is as it should be. We can reduce the pain by removing foreign objects from the wound, or by applying gauze with bactericidal ointment and anaesthetic.
If you experience abnormal swelling, profuse bleeding, fever or a large amount of pain, contact us or an emergency room as soon as possible.