Precautions You Should Take After Having Wisdom Tooth Removal

Wisdom teeth removal is among the most common dental surgeries and might be associated with painful memories for some adults. It seems like each person has a story about their experience. It may be either what they wish they knew about the recovery before the procedure or what happened when the anesthesia wore off.

To help keep the recovery stories on the lighter side, we’ve made a quick overview of wisdom teeth removal. What to expect and precautions you should take after the removal.

What to Expect

The wisdom teeth are the last adult teeth to the surface, usually between 17 to 21 years. Wisdom teeth don’t contribute to a healthy smile, and not everyone keeps them. If wisdom teeth don’t grow properly, they lead to serious problems because of insufficient space to emerge. When it happens, it causes pain and infection.

You should have your wisdom teeth checked before 20 years of age to see how they grow. Your dentist will also check for any impaction of wisdom teeth while the roots develop. Your dentist will sometimes recommend that you have your wisdom tooth removed in a single outpatient procedure.

Although wisdom tooth extraction in Union, NJ, is an outpatient procedure, it’s considered a major form of surgery. Local or general anesthesia is used during the surgery to make you feel more comfortable. However, you’ll experience some discomfort and pain after it wears off. You should ask your dentist about the type of sedation to expect so you can be prepared when you wake up from the procedure.

Precautions to Take After Wisdom Teeth Removal

Post-operative care after a wisdom tooth extraction is very important. You can avoid unnecessary pain and complications of swelling and infection by following the instructions carefully.

Immediately After Surgery

Your dentist places the fresh gauze pad over the surgical area to sit there for one hour. After that, you should remove the gauze pad and discard it.

• You should avoid touching the wound area or rinsing your mouth vigorously. This may initiate bleeding caused by the blood clot being dislodged.
• You should take the prescribed pain medications before the anesthesia starts wearing off. This helps you stay ahead of the pain and discomfort.
• Ensure you avoid strenuous activity for 48 hours
• Place some ice packs on the side of your face where the procedure was performed.

Bleeding

You should expect a certain amount of bleeding after the surgery. Slight oozing, bleeding, or redness in the saliva is common. You can control excessive bleeding by first wiping or rinsing old clots from the tooth socket and biting a gauze pad over that area for one hour. If the bleeding continues, you should bite on a moistened tea bag. This helps form a blood clot by contracting the bleeding vessels. To minimize further bleeding, you should sit upright and avoid exercising. If the bleeding doesn’t subside, call your dentist in Emerald Dental Spa for further instructions.

Swelling

You should expect swelling that’s proportional to dental surgery. Swelling around the cheeks, mouth, sides of the face, and eyes is common. This is your body’s normal reaction to the procedure and eventual repair. The swelling doesn’t become apparent until the day after surgery and won’t reach maximum until two to three days post-operatively.

However, the swelling is not minimized by the immediate use of ice packs. You should apply ice packs to the sides of your face where the surgery was performed. Leave the ice pack on continuously while you are awake. If the swelling and jaw stiffness persists three days after surgery, that’s normal. You should apply moist heat to the sides of your face to help reduce the size of the swelling.

Pain

You can take Ibuprofen for mild to moderate pain. For severe pain, you should take the tablets prescribed as directed by your dentist. The prescribed pain medication makes you dizzy and slows down your reflexes. You should work around machinery or drive an automobile. Also, avoid alcoholic beverages. Discomfort and pain after surgery should subside after a few days. If the pain persists, you’ll require attention and should call our dental office.

Diet

You can take foods such as applesauce and yogurt after IV sedation or general anesthetic. Don’t drink or chew thin liquids before the local anesthetic wears off. Don’t use straws for drinking. The sucking motion causes more bleeding by dislodging the blood clot.