• Please be careful while you’re numb. Try not to burn yourself by consuming something too hot and similarly don’t bite through your lips/ cheeks.

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• When the anaesthetic wears off, most get a “pins and needles” sensation. This is when I recommend you take your first round of pain relief. 

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• Pain relief is going to be your friend. In taking the tooth out the gums and the bone around where the tooth used to be is going to be very sore. It usually takes the body a few days to realise the tooth is out before it starts to heal so expect any potential discomfort to get slightly worse before it can recover.

  • Please stick to medications you know that are safe for you to take, now is not the time to discover an allergy!

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• Please do brush your teeth and continue with your oral hygiene, however, be careful not to brush out the clot in the first couple of days.

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• Do everything in your power to keep the blood clot in place.

  • Be careful with the foods you are eating. Small foodstuffs can get stuck in the healing socket and become infected. Sticking to soup on the day of the extraction is not always a bad idea.​

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• If the extraction socket does get infected and turns into a “dry socket” do not panic. You will notice this if the swellings increase, post op pain increases and/or you start getting a bad taste or even pus coming out of the socket in your mouth.

  • We are acutely aware of how much this can hurt. In theory the extraction has removed the source of the infection and the hole will still be open. This means that you are unfortunately near the bottom of the list when it comes to priority of emergency appointments. Most of of the time the treatment involves clearing the infection manually with a saline solution which is something you can achieve yourself at home with saltwater rinses.

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• There is lots of varying techniques and information out there regarding how to conduct the saltwater rinses. I suggest 1 teaspoon of salt into a glass of water, as hot as you can tolerate it WITHOUT burning yourself as often as you can aiming for at least 4 times a day continuing for 2 days after the pain starts to subside.

  • If the pain has not showed any improvement after 1 week of rinsing with saltwater, then please contact the practice.

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• If you have any swellings that lead to difficulty in breathing, affects your ability to open your mouth or eye please contact or visit your local Emergency department as soon as possible.

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• The easiest way to avoid getting a dry socket is to avoid placing smoke generating products in your mouth.

  • This is the most common linking factor.

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• Alcohol will also affect the healing process and is therefore as always best avoided in excess.

  • I recommend staying below the legal driving limit for 2 days post extraction.