REASON #1: Your Wisdom Tooth has a Cavity!
What is Dry Socket and How Do I Avoid It?
If you are thinking about having your Wisdom Teeth removed you have probably heard the term “Dry Socket” from someone who has had there Wisdom Teeth removed and developed the dreaded “Dry Socket”
So what exactly is Dry Socket and what can you do to avoid getting one?
First off, Dry socket usually occurs 5-10 days after a tooth is extracted. When the tooth is extracted a blood clot forms in the tooth socket and seals the area so that it can heal. Dry Socket occurs when the blood clot breaks down or is dislodged, This exposes the bone and nerves of the tooth and causes extreme pain.
Now the good news is that only 2 to 5% of people will develop a dry socket and there are some things you can do to avoid it all together. We call them the 5 S’s.
1 – Don’t Smoke for 7 days after the surgery. Smokers have a much higher risk of Dry Socket and we see these patients back in our office with dry socket more often then not.
2 – Don’t Spit, when rinsing your mouth after the surgery, try to be gently for a couple days, if you can avoid Spitting you will be better off!
3 – Don’t Swish, also when rinsing, try to think of rinsing as if we are disinfecting the surgical sites rather than trying to get ready for a hot date!
4 – Don’t Suck, we want to avoid sucking through a straw if at all possible for a few days after the surgery. This will help to keep the blood clots in the socket where they belong.
5 – Last but not least No Solids! stick to your Soft food diet for 5-7 days. Besides not smoking this is the most important one, Almost every patient that comes back in to be treated for dry socket has a socket full of food that has to be rinsed out before it can be treated. This is super important!
Our goal at Simply Wisdom Teeth is to first help you avoid getting a Dry Docket, however if you do happen to be one of the 2-5% please rest assured that we will be here to help. We have a 24 hr. Nurse Line that you can call to get help. In most cases we will meet you at the office, clean out the socket, and put some medicine in the socket to relieve you of the pain. In some cases we will have to do this 2-3 times before you heal up from the Dry Socket. Our promise to you is that we will be there to help you if it happens to you!
