After Surgery Care

• You should avoid spitting or rising on your mouth excessively immediately following the surgery
• Do not use straws
• Avoid smoking or drinking alcohol for at least 24 hours or longer if there is an open wound that needs to heal
• Immediately after surgery, avoid hard foods and stick to liquids, if possible
• Often the after-effects of oral surgery are relatively minimal, so not all of these instructions may apply

Post-Operative Instructions

• FOLLOWING SURGERY: Bite on the gauze firmly. If bleeding persists after one hour, you may place enough new gauze to obtain pressure over the surgical site for 40-60 minutes. If bleeding continues, a moist tea bag can be placed in the area of bleeding and bite firmly for one hour. It is normal to have some slight oozing for the first 24 hours.
• PAIN MANAGEMENT: Most oral surgery is accompanied by some degree of discomfort. Narcotic pain pills should always be taken with food. We suggest you take your first pain pill before the anesthetic has worn off. Effects of pain medicines vary widely among individuals. If you do not achieve adequate relief, you may supplement each pill with 600mg of Ibuprofen (Advil). It is best to take a pain pill every 5 hours with food for the first 48 hours to stay ahead of the pain. After 48 hours, it is okay to take it as needed.
• SWELLING: Often, there is some swelling associated with oral surgery. You can minimize this by applying an ice pack and apply firmly to the face or cheek adjacent to the surgical area. Apply 20 minutes on and 20 minutes off during the first 12–24 hours after surgery. AFTER 24-48 hours, you may switch to WARM applications. Same method, 20 minutes on and 20 minutes off with a warm compress. The warmth will help decrease soreness and stiffness.

Six Things Not to Do for 72 Hours Following Oral Surgery

• DO NOT use a straw.
• DO NOT smoke, as it is very detrimental to healing and causes a "dry socket."
• DO NOT rinse vigorously with mouthwash or water (mild swishing is okay).
• NO hot liquids until your local anesthetic has worn off (lukewarm coffee, tea, or soup is fine).
• NO spitting; wipe the saliva from your lips with tissue instead.
• NO carbonated beverages. (Coke, Sprite, Pepsi, etc.) 
• • DIET: Eat soft, nutritious food and drink plenty of liquids. Avoid foods like nuts, sunflower seeds, popcorn, etc. that may get lodged in the socket areas. The goal is to avoid disturbing the blood clot. Do not skip meals; if you eat nutritious foods, you will feel better, gain strength, have less discomfort, and heal faster.
  • IRRIGATING SYRINGE: irrigating the sockets; the lower sockets should be kept clean using an irrigating syringe beginning 3-5 days after surgery. This is usually necessary for a minimum of 10 to 14 days after surgery. Irrigation should be done with water or salt water three times daily to remove all food particles from the sockets. Continue using until you no longer have food getting stuck in the sockets.  IF you had an IMPLANT and/or GRAFTING done, then you will not use the irrigating syringe in these areas.  DO NOT CHEW on Implant/Grafted sites. (Chewing on your Implant and/or Grafted area can cause failure)

PLEASE NOTE:

• The surgical area will swell. This peaks on the second or third day following surgery.
• You may have a slight earache.
• You may develop a sore throat.
• It is not unusual to develop bruising in the area of extraction.
• Our main goal following surgery is to form blood clots in the extraction sites and minimize discomfort.
• Nausea is not uncommon after surgery, usually caused by more potent pain medicines. A small amount of soft food and large amounts of clear fluids while taking the medication may help reduce nausea.
• Your other teeth may ache temporarily. This is referred pain and is a temporary condition.

Medications

You may be prescribed only one or all of these medications depending on your surgery:

Antibiotic: Amoxicillin/Cleocin/Augmentin/Cipro

You can start taking this on the day of surgery. Follow directions on the label. It is typically helpful to eat before taking medication if you have an easily upset stomach.

Pain medication: Norco/Tramadol/Lodine/Ibuprofen

Take this medication 1-4 hours following your surgery. Narcotic pain pills should always be taken with food. We suggest you take your first pain pill before the anesthetic has worn off. Effects of pain medicines vary widely among individuals. If you do not achieve adequate relief, you may supplement each pill with 600mg of Ibuprofen (Advil). It is best to take a pain pill every 5 hours with food for the first 48 hours to stay ahead of the pain. After 48 hours, it is okay to take it as needed. If you are prescribed Lodine, do not use Ibuprofen.

Steroid: Medrol Dose Pak

This medication is prescribed to help with swelling. Start this medication one day after your surgery. Follow the directions on the label.

Anti-Nausea medication: Zofran /Phenergan

This medication is to be taken only if you have nausea. If you do not have any nausea, you will not need this medication. Typically, you can have the pharmacist hold it and only pick it up if needed.

As always, with prescription medications, follow the directions on the bottle and take as prescribed.

Want to Learn More About After Surgery Care in Plano, Texas?

At Texas Oral Surgery Group, our goal is to help you achieve the best results regardless of whether your procedure is cosmetic or medical. Please follow these instructions, and if you have any questions, please do not hesitate to contact us right away!