At Foothill Center for Dental Implants and Oral Surgery, A Dental Corporation, we understand that facing oral surgery can seem overwhelming. After all, for many of our Pasadena dental patients, dental surgery is the first surgical procedure they’ve ever experienced. In addition to having anxiety about their procedure, many of our patients are worried about what their recovery process will entail. To better educate you, we have prepared this do’s and don’ts list for your recovery after dental surgery.
At Foothill Center for Dental Implants and Oral Surgery, A Dental Corporation, we understand that facing oral surgery can seem overwhelming. After all, for many of our Pasadena dental patients, dental surgery is the first surgical procedure they’ve ever experienced. In addition to having anxiety about their procedure, many of our patients are worried about what their recovery process will entail. To better educate you, we have prepared this do’s and don’ts list for your recovery after dental surgery.
Do’s
- After your Pasadena dental surgery, make sure that you follow all of our doctor’s postoperative instructions to a “t.” Trust us, we have years of experience in treating patients via oral surgery, and our recovery instructions are time tested to help you heal and feel great as soon as possible.
- Make sure that you plan time to rest the day of your procedure. Even though you’ve had an outpatient dental surgery, you’ve still had surgery! When lying down, make sure to keep your head propped up with pillows so that you have adequate blood flow to your head, which will help reduce swelling in your face and mouth, as well as prevent excessive bleeding.
- Use ice throughout the day to reduce swelling. Our doctor recommends that Pasadena dental surgery patients alternate icing their face for 30 minutes on and 30 minutes off, for 18 hours.
- Always take your pain medication exactly as prescribed. Even if you’re still numb from your local anesthesia when a dose is due, trust us, the postoperative pain is coming! Additionally, make sure you wake up in the middle of the night to take your dose of medication so that you can stay on top of your pain.
- Eat soft foods, but only after your bleeding has stopped. Examples of appropriate foods to eat include liquids, soups, mashed potatoes, and yogurt.
- Keep your mouth clean by rinsing it with warm salt water about 4 times a day on the second day after your surgery. This is especially important to do after you have eaten so that you can gently remove any food debris left in your mouth.
- Eat healthy foods with vitamins A or C, which help promote healing, or take supplemental vitamins.
Don’ts
Avoid exercise or strenuous activities for the first few days after your dental surgery. Remember, now is the time for you to heal.
Refrain from consuming any hot beverages or food until after your numbness has waned. Eating hot foods or drinking hot beverages while you are still numb may cause you to inadvertently burn your mouth.
Pasadena dental surgery patients should avoid chewing hard, crunchy foods in the area of their mouth where their procedure was performed for the first 6 to 8 weeks after their surgery.
While we know the general rule of thumb is to brush your teeth twice a day and floss once a day, avoid doing so until our doctors tell you it’s okay. Remember, you need to be gentle with your mouth to allow for proper healing.
Do not smoke for as long as you possibly can – at the very least, for the whole day of and after your dental surgery. Smoking can not only make it harder for your body to heal, but if you had a tooth extraction, the sucking motion of smoking might cause you to develop a painful oral surgery complication called dry sockets.
In addition to avoiding smoking, don’t drink any alcohol for the first 24 hours after your Pasadena dental surgery. Doing so may, not only make it harder for you to heal, but also interfere with any pain or antibiotic medication our doctors may have prescribed you.
Call Us With Additional Questions
Whether you are facing oral surgery or are already in the process of recovering, we want to help you heal as soon as possible. If you have any further questions about what to do or not to do after having oral surgery, contact our Pasadena office immediately at (626) 792-3161.
