Recovery Care Tips After Tooth Extraction And Dental Implant Procedures
Posted on: 7 January 2016
To get the most benefit from your dental implants, following your dental professional's instructions for after the procedure is extremely important. Your home care after a dental implant procedure will depend on whether you had tooth extraction first, then implants put in later or if you had an implant placed immediately after having a tooth taken out. Follow these tips for ensuring you experience the least pain possible while allowing your gums to heal or while giving your implant time to begin the important process of osseointegration.
Swelling Is Normal And Easily Manageable
No matter if you have had one tooth extraction, several teeth extracted or several teeth extracted with implants placed in one day, you are going to experience some swelling. Swelling can be managed for reducing it and relieving pain it causes by applying an ice pack. Keeping an ice pack on the affected area for fifteen minutes, then resting it for fifteen minutes before putting it back on is recommended. Swelling is normal and sometimes does not begin to show until a day or so after the procedure, depending on your body's particular immunity. However, if any swelling persists longer than seven days, seeking treatment from your dentist is important.
Adhering To A Liquid Or Soft Diet Is Important
If you have only had teeth extracted or you have newly placed implants, you should be careful about your diet for a few weeks, especially if you have dental implants already in place. Eating a diet of soft, cool foods is important and will not cause your implants to become disrupted until they have integrated with the bone for strength and immobility. If you had tooth extractions only in preparation for the placement of implants later on, your goal is to care for your gums so they will be healed and healthy at the time the implants are put in. Maintaining a liquid diet is best until your gums are healed. Soft foods are also fine with tooth extractions, but always remember to let foods or liquids cool before eating them because the heat will cause great pain in your gums that may still be raw from your procedure.
Spitting, Rinsing Or Drinking From Straws Is Not Advisable
When you spit or rinse your mouth out, you create a suction that can cause your tender gums to start bleeding after a dental procedure. Never drink out of a straw, especially after tooth extraction procedures. The suction created from drinking from a straw can remove the clot forming in the socket where a tooth once resided. Once the clot is gone, the nerves are exposed, and you will have the immeasurable pain of a dry socket. A dry socket is extremely painful and requires immediate treatment. If you have had implants placed, the same applies when it comes to avoiding unnecessary suction in your mouth because it can disrupt the osseointegration process and also cause bleeding around them.
For more information, contact Dental Images or a similar organization.
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