Monthly Archives: August 2017

How to Prevent a Dry Socket

If you’ve ever had your teeth pulled, especially a wisdom tooth, usually there is a condition called a dry socket which is what people want you to avoid. It’s a very painful condition and if it happens after a tooth is removed, it’s actually ten times more painful than the actual removal of the tooth. While it can be treated, you should prevent the dry socket period, and here is how.

So what is a dry socket? Well, it’s essentially when the tooth that’s been removed has the cloth pulled away, and the blood or nerve that is created is exposed. The clot is usually what’s used to prevent this from being exposed, but if it doesn’t clot, anything that’s in your mouth, whether it be food, fluids, air, or whatever, can make the area incredibly sensitive, and it also makes it highly prone to infection.

When you do get a tooth removed, you should expect some level of discomfort, but if you notice pain rather than the latter, especially either radiating to the ear or increasing in intensity, and if you notice a bad taste in your mouth, you should contact the dentist invisalign to figure out what to do next.

So how do you prevent it? Well, you’re at a higher risk if you do have a wisdom tooth extracted, have had previous history, use a birth control, do smoke or use straws, have had extractions that were traumatic in the past, have a history with bad dental hygiene, or you’ve taken medicine that prevents the blood from clotting.

When you do have a tooth taken out, you should always tell your dentist of any antibiotics or antiseptic options, and then follow through with the post-op instructions that will prevent the dry socket from happening, such as not rinsing for 24 hours, no using straws or smoking, avoiding foods that are hot or crunchy, not having alcohol, and also avoiding activity for about 5-7 days or so. By doing this, you can prevent dry socket from happening inside your mouth, and preventing this painful action.

How do you treat it? Well, the first thing that you will need to do is tell your dentist about it. But, if you take the right steps, you will only have a 2-5% chance of experiencing this. If you do have that, you may need to take some pain relievers, medications, flushing and rinsing, and obviously avoiding smoking, straw, or sugary drinks. You also need to make sure that you do have proper oral care practices with this and make sure that you take care of your teeth after it’s all said and done. You’d be amazed at how many people don’t do that, and ultimately, it creates a major problem.

A dry socket is not fun, and oftentimes, it’s actually super painful, and you’ll wish you were getting an extraction instead of this. But, if you want to prevent it from happening, or make it so that you’re feeling better at the end of it, take these steps and ensure that you’re getting the right treatment that you want to get. You’d be amazed at how a little bit of treatment and some different activities can prevent this from happening and in turn it will make your wisdom tooth removal much easier on you.