Even the well informed patients can sometimes ask themselves “What should I do after a tooth extraction?”. And because the dentist‘s instructions can often be forgotten, in the whirlwind of emotions related to the intervention, it is useful for patients to have an accurate guide at hand, which can be reviewed from the comfort of their own home. This article is intended to answer the most frequently asked questions after a tooth extraction.
- Immediately after the tooth extraction, food and drink are not allowed to be ingested for a minimum period of 2 hours. Analgesics are usually indicated, for example ibuprofen 400 mg 3 times a day.
- For the first 24 hours, do not rinse your mouth or brush your teeth with a toothbrush! Do not smoke, do not drink alcohol or hot drinks for at least 24 hours. Use only the preparations indicated by the dentist. Stay in a sitting position as much as possible during the day the operation was performed. The lying position in the bed favors vasodilation at the level of the head and consequently the bleeding of the place where the tooth extraction was performed. During the first night, sleep as much as possible with your head higher than the rest of your body, not on one side, especially on the side of the intervention!
- The day after the operation, the teeth are easily cleaned with a toothbrush, without other substances, and the mouth rinses must be very light, don’t rinse hard. Regular brushing is resumed from the third day after tooth extraction. In the first 3 days, preferably within one week of the intervention, semi-liquid or liquid foods are recommended. Foods that should be chewed, dry foods that may further injure the oral cavity are not recommended. Fermented or lactic acid foods are not recommended.
- In the first week after the intervention, intense physical effort or weight lifting are prohibited, emotional and physical stress are not recommended.
- After one week, if sutures have been applied, it will be necessary to control the wound and possibly remove the sutures. If the dentist used resorbable material, it is not necessary to remove the threads, but the visual examination of the post-extraction space is necessary anyway.
If the condition changes, some unusual symptoms appear, the only person accredited to help you is the dentist. Self-treatment is not recommended and do not forget that the advice of those around you is always subjective, what suits one person can harm someone else.
Immediately consider the prospect of a dental implant or prosthesis, as the space released after tooth extraction may cause the migration of adjacent teeth or bone resorption, and immediate completion of dental treatment will relieve you of further worries and additional expenses in the future!
Our dental clinic is waiting for you not only for treatment, but also for the prevention of dental problems!
