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Home Care Following an
Implant
Home Care Following an
Extraction
Home Care Following
Periodontal Surgery
Home Care Following Dry
Socket
Home Care Following
Amalgam Fillings
Home Care Following a
White Filling
Home Care Following a
Temporary Crown or Bridge
Home Care Following a
Cosmetic Procedure
Home Care Following a Root
Canal
Home Care Following an Implant
Before your implant surgery you will receive an anesthetic.
This will leave your mouth numb for several hours after your
surgery. Do not eat or drink until the numbness wears off
completely.
Beginning the day before your surgery, an antibiotic will be
given to you. Continue this antibiotic for the indicated
length of time following your surgery. An oral antibiotic
rinse will be given to you before and after the surgery.
Please follow the instructions for the time length.
If IV sedation or general anesthesia is used, do not eat or
drink anything after midnight of the day preceding your surgery.
The day of your surgery use the oral antibiotic rinse and your
antibiotic with a small sip of water.
After surgery you will be instructed to bite firmly and gently
on a moist gauze pad to help stop the bleeding. You will
be given several gauze pads to take home and should change the
pad as necessary until the bleeding stops completely. If
bleeding does not stop or increases, please call us.
You will experience some discomfort following your surgery. If
need be, we can prescribe a mild pain reliever. Also,
applying an ice pack, 20 minutes on and 20 minutes off, for the
first six hours after surgery will help relieve pain and
swelling. Use the ice pack for no more than 72 hours, then
apply moist heat.
For the 24-28 hours following surgery, keep your head elevated
and avoid all strenuous activities for at least two days to help
minimize swelling and bleeding.
Drink at least 8 glasses of water or fruit juice each day and
eat only soft foods such as yogurt, soup, pudding, and
soft-cooked eggs for at least the first week following surgery.
Carefully rinse your mouth, three or four times a day, with a
warm salt water solution for the week following the surgery.
(one teaspoon salt in one cup warm water.)
Leave out dentures or partial dentures that cover the implant
site for at least one week following surgery. A soft
reline can be created after the healing is done so you can wear
your dentures comfortably.
You may experience some soreness as the jawbone grows over the
titanium post for several weeks following your surgery. An
over the counter pain reliever (ibuprofen) will ease the pain.
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2. Home Care Following an Extraction
You will experience some swelling for 24 hours after the
extraction. Expect one to two weeks of recovery time.
Before your extraction, you will receive an anesthetic. This
will leave your mouth numb for several hours after your surgery.
Do not eat or drink until the numbness wears off completely.
An
over-the-counter pain reliever, such as ibuprofen, will ease
your discomfort. If this does not help, call for a prescription.
An
ice pack, on for 20 minutes and off for 20 minutes, for the
first six hours after the extraction will also help relieve
discomfort and swelling.
A
blood clot will form at the site of the extraction, which is
vital to the healing process. Do not touch the clot with your
tongue or fingers, drink liquids through a straw, spit
vigorously, or smoke. Where as the blood clot may become
dislodge and slow the healing process. Also, sneezing or blowing
your nose could dislodge the clot.
Do
not rinse your mouth the day of the extraction. After 24 hours
you may rinse gently with mouthwash or a salt and warm water
mixture. Be sure to spit carefully. Rinse 2-3 times a day for a
week after the extraction.
Take the prescribed antibiotics for the indicated length of
time.
Avoid strenuous activities for at least 24 hours after your
surgery.
Drink at least eight glasses of water or fruit juice each day
and eat only soft foods such as, yogurt, soup, pudding, and
soft-cooked eggs for at least 48 hours following surgery.
Gauze pads will be given to you to place on the site of the
extraction to help control the bleeding. Change as necessary
until the bleeding stops completely. Keeping your head elevated
with pillows while also help control the bleeding.
Continue to brush and floss your other teeth as normal.
The site of the extraction will feel strange for a while. New
bone and gum tissue will grow in and cover the gap left by the
extraction.
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3. Home Care Following Periodontal Surgery
Before your surgery, you will receive an anesthetic. This will
leave your mouth numb for several hours after your surgery. Do
not eat or drink until the numbness wears off completely.
To
ease pain and swelling, apply an ice pack 20 minutes on and 20
minutes off, for six hours following your surgery. Do not touch
the area of your gums affected by the surgery with your tongue
or fingers.
Do
not rinse your mouth the day of the surgery. 24 hours after your
surgery, you can gently rinse your mouth with mouthwash or warm
salt water, spitting carefully, three times a day.
You may experience some discomfort after the surgery, which will
be eased by taking a mild pain medication. If antibiotics are
prescribed, take for the entire length of time.
Refrain from all strenuous activities for at least 24 hours
following surgery.
For 48 hours following surgery, when the numbness has worn off,
eat only soft food such as, yogurt, soup, ice cream, and
soft-cooked eggs. Drink eight glasses of water or fruit juices a
day.
To
control bleeding, elevate your head with pillows. Gauze pads
will be given to place over the site of the surgery to control
bleeding. Change as often as needed. If bleeding persist or
increases, call the office.
Continue normal cleaning routine in other
areas of the mouth at least twice a day.
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4. Home Care Following Dry Socket
Dry Socket only
occurs in about five percent of tooth extractions. When the
blood clot does not form or comes loose following an extraction,
an infection can occur. The blood clot is the foundation for new
bone tissue to grow after the extraction. If the clot does not
form or is damaged, it is a dry socket.
It may take 3-5 days
for symptoms of the infection to occur after an extraction.
Symptoms will include a constant, severe pain and what feels
like an earache. You will also experience a bad taste in your
mouth and bad breath.
To avoid losing your
blood clot there are several preventive measures you can take:
Refrain from smoking, sucking through a straw, forceful
spitting, coughing, and sneezing. You should also avoid
carbonated and alcoholic beverages. Keep fingers and tongue away
from the extraction site.
To ease pain and
swelling, apply an ice pack to your jaw, 15-20 minutes on and
30-40 minutes off, for the first 24 hours following your
surgery.
Do not rinse your
mouth the day of the surgery. Beginning the next day, gently
rinse with mouthwash or warm salt water.
If you notice any
symptoms of dry socket, call the office immediately. It will be
treated by rinsing it and packing with a sterile gauze and
topical anesthetic dressing. This will need to be changed, by
the dentist, several times over two weeks.
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Oral Care Topics
5. Home Care Following Amalgam Fillings
Before your surgery,
you will receive an anesthetic. This will leave your mouth numb
for several hours after your surgery. Do not eat or drink until
the numbness wears off completely.
It is normal to
experience sore gums, pressure and sensitivity to heat and cold
after receiving your filling. To ease pain and swelling, rinse
your mouth with warm salt water.
If the discomfort
last longer than one week, call the office.
For 24 hours
following receiving your filling, do not eat hard foods or chew
foods on the tooth that was filled and use the opposite side of
your mouth for eating.
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Oral Care Topics
6. Home Care Following a White Filling
Before your surgery,
you will receive an anesthetic. This will leave your mouth numb
for several hours after your surgery. Do not eat or drink until
the numbness wears off completely.
It is normal to
experience sore gums, pressure and sensitivity to heat and cold
after receiving your filling. To ease pain and swelling, rinse
your mouth with warm salt water.
If the discomfort
last longer than one week, call the office.
Since white filling
set immediately, after the numbness wears off, you may chew
normally.
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Oral Care Topics
7. Home Care Following a Temporary Crown or Bridge
While a custom
restoration is being created, you will be fitted with a
temporary crown or bridge to protect your teeth and gums. This
will prevent the surrounding teeth from shifting and changing
the fit of the custom restoration.
You will need to
slightly alter your normal eating and oral hygiene habits to
ensure that your temporary stays in place:
Do not chew gum or eat sticky foods
Chew on the opposite side of your mouth
Carefully brush and floss each day, but pull the floss from the
side and not the top next to the temporary to prevent it from
coming loose.
If you notice any of
the following, call the office immediately:
If the temporary
comes loose
Your bite feel uneven
You experience constant pain
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to Oral Care Topics
8. Home Care Following a Cosmetic Procedure
It will take some
time to adjust to your new bite. Here are some steps to take.
It will take several
days for you to adjust the new position of your teeth. If you
notice any high spots, call the office.
For several days
following your procedure you will be sensitive to hot, cold, and
pressure. If this does not subside after several days, call the
office.
You may experience
some soreness and swelling in your ums for several days. Rinsing
with warm salt water will help ease the pain and swelling. A
mild over-the-counter pain reliever will also help with the
pain.
While you adjust to
your new bite, your speech will be affected slightly and you
will notice and increase in the flow of salvia. This will not
last more than a week.
A custom mouth guard
can be created to protect your new smile during sports.
As with natural
teeth, your new teeth will crack or chip if you eat hard foods
or chew on hard substances.
To ensure that your
new teeth will last try to avoid or minimize the following: use
of tobacco, red wine, colas, coffee, and tea and chewing on ice,
pencils, fingernails, or hard candy.
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to Oral Care Topics
9. Home Care Following a Root Canal
Before your surgery,
you will receive an anesthetic. This will leave your mouth numb
for several hours after your surgery. Do not eat or drink until
the numbness wears off completely.
While your custom
restoration is being created, a temporary filling or crown will
be placed on the tooth that received the root canal. It is
normal for a small piece to chip off the temporary. To ensure
the temporary stays in place follow these steps:
Do not chew gum or
eat sticky foods
Chew on the opposite side of your mouth
Brush normally; and floss carefully, pulling the floss from the
side and not the top next to the temporary.
After having a root
canal, you will experience some discomfort and sensitivity. If
antibiotics are prescribed, take for the entire period of time
indicated. A mild over-the-counter pain reliever will help ease
any discomfort. Rinsing three times a day with warm salt water
will also help ease discomfort.
After your permanent
crown or filling has been fitted, it should look and feel
natural. Brush and floss as normal.
If you notice any of
the following,
please call the office:
Uneven bite Tooth
feels tight
Difficult to floss around
Persistent pain
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