POST-OPERATIVE INSTRUCTIONS:
EXTRACTION AND BONE GRAFT

Discomfort

Pain relief medication will be prescribed. Ibuprofen (600 mg) 4 times daily and Tylenol (1000 mg) 4 times daily can be alternated every 3 hours or so. Tylenol #3 may also be prescribed. This is a strong painkiller and should only be used if other drugs are not effective.

Swelling

To avoid swelling, use a cold pack (ice or frozen vegetables) wrapped in a moist towel on the side of your face — 20 minutes on and 20 minutes off for the first 12 hours following surgery. Swelling peaks at 72 hours and takes approximately 1 week to completely resolve.

Bleeding

It is not unusual to have some slight bleeding. If the site continues to bleed, try to relax and apply constant pressure with moist gauze or a moistened tea bag for 30 minutes. In order to avoid bleeding, keep your head elevated during the first evening, discontinue your exercise regimen for 1 to 2 days, and restrict yourself to a soft diet. As well, do not rinse your mouth, spit, drink through a straw, smoke, or drink alcohol for 24 hours following surgery. You may want to cover your pillow in order to avoid staining the cover the night following surgery.

Oral Hygiene

After surgery it is important to keep your teeth and mouth as clean as possible. The prescribed antibacterial mouth rinse is to be used twice daily for 4 days after surgery and then can be applied locally with a cotton swab. Additionally, warm salt-water rinses (1/2 tsp salt in warm water) can be used several times daily. The non-treated areas can be brushed normally. Do not brush your teeth or rinse your mouth for the first 24 hours following surgery.

Post-operative Appointments

You can expect to see a white membrane covering the bone-grafted extraction socket, which is held in place by sutures. The complete course of antibiotics must be completed. You will be seen for 2 or 3 post-operative visits:

  1. One week following surgery to check healing and remove sutures.

  2. Possibly 2 to 3 weeks following surgery for further follow-up and suture removal.

  3. Three to 4 weeks following surgery to remove the membrane.

An additional appointment will be scheduled for approximately 4 months following the surgery to assess the maturation of the bone graft. At this appointment, you will be given relevant information for tooth replacement.