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After-Care Instructions

Dos and Don’ts after wisdom tooth extraction

After a successful wisdom tooth removal surgery, the most important thing to do is to properly follow any post op-instructions for care given by your team. This is the key for a comfortable recovery. Most people take 4-5 days for wisdom teeth post op timeline for recovery with a small number taking longer than a week. Rest, diet, and cleaning the areas are very important during this time in addition to following any special instructions.

Don't Rinse for the first 12 hours

You can drink liquids, but don’t swish it around. We want a blood clot to form at the sites; rinsing may dislodge this clot, causing an infection (called dry socket – it’s really nasty!). After 12 hours, rinse with warm salt water 3-4 times a day (or with the rinse you’ve been given) for the next two weeks (gently for the first couple of days).

Rest

It’s important to take time for yourself and rest – don’t forget you should avoid vigorous physical activity while healing. Remember that if you were sedated for your procedure, it is essential that you don’t operate any heavy machinery for at least 24 hours, or longer if you are still feeling dizzy.

That means no driving and no major decisions – like whether to move in with your significant other or quit your job – until you’ve had plenty of time to rest after the surgery. 48 hours after wisdom teeth removal, you should pretty much be into a groove of routine in taking care of yourself. Be sure to follow these rules so you can have a safe and successful recovery!

Medication

Also, be sure to take your medication as prescribed and call the clinic or 24 hour number provided after your surgery if something doesn’t feel right. It’s important to follow the instructions you were given to the T.

Taking good care of yourself during this time is key to getting back on track quickly. Good luck with your recovery!

Ice

After surgery, and for the following 24 hours, placing ice on the outside of the face in the area of the extraction is very important. We recommend 10 minutes on and 10 minutes off. If you can do that for a minimum of 3 to 4 hours, that would be great. If you can do more than that, that would be awesome!! The more you ice it for the 24-hours after the removal surgery, the less swelling (and therefore pain) you will have in the 2-3 days after the surgery.

Dry Socket

A dry socket is a really nasty infection caused by the blood clot moving or dissolving, exposing the bone and causing a lot of pain and discomfort. Some things that can cause this are rinsing too early or too hard to dislodge the socket; smoking is also a common culprit, and this can dissolve the blood clot.

CONTACT US

If you need to contact us for anything, don’t hesitate. The most important thing is to follow the instructions and stay calm. We’re a phone call away!