AVOID EXCESSIVE exercise and strenuous activity for the rest of the day.

DO NOT DRINK ANYTHING HOT OR ALCOHOLIC OR SMOKE A CIGARETTE FOR THREE TO FOUR HOURS AFTER EXTRACTION.

Failure to comply with these instructions may re-start bleeding.

DO NOT rinse your mouth out excessively on the same day as the extraction. Excessive rinsing encourages bleeding.

You may feel sharp edges in the socket with your tongue and small fragments of bone may work loose. This is normal.

If you have been given antibiotics you must finish the course even if the pain and/or swelling has disappeared.

DAY AFTER EXTRACTIONS AND FOR ONE WEEK THEREAFTER

It is very important that you keep your mouth as clean as possible. Rinse out your mouth as often as possible (after every meal if you can) with hot water and salt. This will promote faster and cleaner healing.

If severe pain starts a day or so after an extraction it probably means that you have a DRY SOCKET. This is a very painful condition and affects at random a small proportion of extractions. It means that there will be delayed healing. Pain and a bad taste are the usual main features. Dry sockets never last longer than two weeks and are usually healed well inside that time. If your dry socket is very painful please contact the practice: we can easily treat it and make it more comfortable.

IF EXCESSIVE BLEEDING OCCURS:

Use cotton wool or a handkerchief to make a firm pad an inch thick. Place the pad into the bleeding socket from tongue side to cheek side. Bite firmly to compress the pad on the bleeding socket for 15 to 20 minutes without disturbing.

Do not lie down or panic as this will increase the blood supply to the head and make the bleeding more pronounced. It is advisable to keep sitting up. If your efforts are unsuccessful after 2 to 3 hours, contact the practice.