Extracting a tooth should be considered as a minor operation so it’s important to clean the area thoroughly to reduce the risk of infection and to speed healing. Here’s a few pointers to aid the process :

• Avoid eating hot food, smoking & drinking alcohol. Try not to disturb any blood clot which might have formed, for the first 24 hours.
• After extraction don’t rinse your mouth for 24 hours. After that, rinse gently with warm salty water – half a teaspoon of salt in a glass of water is enough.
• Brush your teeth normally to keep your mouth as clean as possible.
• You may feel some small pieces of bone work their way out of the socket – No need to worry, it’s completely normal.
• You may face a bit of discomfort and there may be some swelling in the first two to three days. You can take ordinary
  painkillers – aspirin, ibuprofen or paracetamol if you need to.
• After the tooth has been removed and you feel pain after a few days, there may be an empty hole in the gum where the blood clot has broken down. This is called a ‘dry socket’ and you’ll need to arrange an appointment with your dentist so we can pack the wound to ease your discomfort.

After-care

You’ll be given some gauze to place onto the area where the tooth has been removed by the dentist. If you need to replace the gauze a a clean cloth or handkerchief will do (but not a paper tissue).

• Use a small firm pad and roll it to fit over the gap (probably around 1cm by 3cm).
• Using the gauze or hanky sit up and gently clear away any blood clots around the gap.
• Put a clean pad over the gap (from tongue side to cheek side) and bite down on it firmly for 10 to 15 minutes.

Take the pad off and check whether the bleeding has stopped. If not, apply a fresh pad and contact your dentist at the practice.

Contact the practice to book an appointment : 020 8980 6398.