Minor oral surgery: aftercare

The local anesthetic should wear off between 2 to 4 hours. After that you may experience some pain. Pain relievers can help relieve the pain. You will receive a prescription. It is best if you start using a pain reliever before the local anesthetic wears off completely.

Your wound may bleed a little in the first hour after surgery. The bleeding will stop by itself. It is best not to spit out the blood as this activates the wound to bleed more. If there is too much blood in your mouth, you may use a clean gauze to clean up some of the blood because swallowing too much blood may make you nauseous.

Your mouth may also contain some blood the day after your surgery. If the wound begins to bleed more heavily, you may do the following: use a clean gauze or handkerchief  (no cottonballs) to clean and dry out your mouth. Do not, for any reason, rinse your mouth out! Take a new, moist gauze and fold it into a small pad and place it onto the wound. Bite on this gauze with a light, steady pressure for 1 hour. It is important to apply constant pressure to the wound. If the wound is still bleeding after this, please contact us.

You may experience some swelling after surgery, this is normal. The swelling will be at its worst 3 days after surgery and will slowly go away. To help reduce the swelling you can use an ice pack wrapped in a towel or handkerchief. Hold it where you’ve been treated for 15 minutes, then take it off for 15 minutes. Keep switching every 15 minutes and continue for about 2 hours. Bruising is also normal and if this happens your cheek will be swollen and discolored a little longer than normal.

You may have difficulty opening your mouth after surgery. This usually happens when surgery takes place in the back of the mouth. It should return to normal after a couple of days. You can help by trying to open your mouth wider every now and then.

It is best to eat soft foods for the first 2 days. Do not skip any meals, use the same proportions for your meals, and keep your food/drinks lukewarm.

To allow the wound to heal properly, do not rinse your mouth out or brush your teeth on the day of your surgery. You may start normal oral hygiene the next day. We advise you to use the prescribed mouthwash for a period of 5-10 days or you may rinse with a saltwater solution.

It is best not to smoke or drink any alcoholic drinks for a period of a week after your surgery. They both slow down the healing of the wound.

Keep the wound clean

After the removal of your wisdom tooth there will be a hole where the roots used to be. It’s important to keep this hole clean so the wound can heal. Below are the instructions on how to keep the wound clean by using an irrigation syringe with a curved tip.

When should the wound be rinsed?

You need to rinse the wound when:
•food gets in the wound
•you get a nasty taste in your mouth

This nasty taste can occur a couple of days after your surgery. Do not start rinsing the wound directly after your surgery, wait 3 days before beginning.

How to rinse the wound

You can use an irrigation syringe with a curved tip to rinse the wound. Use a glass of lukewarm water to fill the syringe. Put the tip of the syringe in the hole where your wisdom tooth was and carefully rinse the wound.

How often should you rinse the wound

You should rinse the wound after every meal and before you go to bed. Everytime you rinse the wound you should rinse it twice.

The oral surgent will check the boxes below that apply to you:

• If the bleeding does not stop.
• If your body temperature exceeds 39°C/102°F.
• If after 4 to 5 days the pain or swelling does not go away but stays the same or worsens.
• If you are worried or have any other questions.

Bij onze kaakchirurgen en tandartsen kunt u terecht voor alle onderzoeken en behandelingen van klachten, aandoeningen en afwijkingen in en om de mond, het gezicht en de hals. Het specialisme Kaakchirurgie & Mondziekten biedt een breed pakket aan hoogwaardige zorg.

Wij werken nauw samen met de tandarts, huisarts en/of specialist die u heeft doorverwezen naar het St. Antonius Ziekenhuis. Daarnaast werken we nauw samen met de tandartsen van het Centrum voor Bijzondere Tandheelkunde (CBT) en de Tandarts Spoed Praktijk. Op de afdeling is een mondhygiëniste werkzaam.