This includes nuts, popcorn, rice, and pasta. These types of foods can dislodge blood clots from extraction sites and cause dry socket. Better suggestions for your patients include soft foods such as mashed potatoes, applesauce, yogurt, and gelatin.
If food particles enter the socket, they can exacerbate the pain, increase the risk of infection, and slow down the healing.
Dry socket may be caused by a range of factors, such as an underlying infection in the mouth, trauma from the tooth extraction or problems with the jawbone. The condition occurs more often with wisdom teeth in the lower jaw than with other teeth. You are also more likely than others to develop dry socket if you: smoke.
Dislodge the food by gently rinsing your mouth with warm salt water (saline) solution. Avoid swishing the water around and don't spit—this can lead to painful dry sockets. If you received a syringe from your clinician, you can use warm water or salt water to gently flush the socket clean.
A dry socket occurs when the blood clot breaks down or is dislodged, exposing the bone and nerves. The first five or so days after extraction are the most critical, and it is during this time that the risk for a dry socket is the highest.
Dry socket is a condition professionally referred to as “alveolar osteitis”, and it is one of the possible complications that can occur after a tooth is extracted. It is actually a fairly rare condition, with only 20% of wisdom tooth removal patients experiencing this condition.
Dry socket can occur anywhere from 2% to 5% of the time with the extraction of a tooth. Mandibular teeth are affected by this condition more often than maxillary teeth. Dry socket is most common in molar extractions and especially in wisdom teeth, where it can occur up to 30% of the time.
Usually, a week (7-8 days) after wisdom tooth extraction, you can stop worrying about a dry socket as gums take this much time to close fully. But remember, every patient recovers differently, which depends on the age, oral hygiene, and the care taken.
Rinse Your Mouth With Salt Water
In a study published in Evidence-Based Dentistry, researchers discovered that patients who didn't rinse their mouth with salt water after their surgery were more likely to develop dry sockets as opposed to those that did. Doing this will also help speed up your recovery.
How will I know if my blood clot fell out? If you develop dry sockets, the pain will let you know that your wound is no longer protected. Swelling is also an indication you have lost your blood clot, as is the taste of blood in your mouth.
The highest risk for this condition is between days 2-3 after tooth extraction. After day 4, the risk of dry socket is passed. This condition rarely happens (about 4% of all extractions) and is most common after bottom wisdom teeth extraction.
Do: Get Your Fluids. Drinking water helps keep your teeth clean and bacteria free on top of keeping your body hydrated. You should drink plenty of water after your tooth extraction to keep the extraction site clear and prevent infection.
The drawing action of sucking in, and the force applied when spitting, can dislodge the blood clot. Sneezing and coughing can also dislodge a blood clot. Hard or crunchy foods can displace the blood clot. Sticky foods can pull the protective clot right out of the socket.
If perhaps there is welling up of blood from a lower extraction or dripping from an upper extraction, place in new moistened (with warm water) gauze pads for 20-30 minutes. Do not spit out, swallow your saliva or you will disturb the clot and you will bleed. Don't rinse out, or you will bleed.
You should experience post-surgery pain one day after your surgery should, but dry socket pain usually peaks 3-5 days after the extraction. Moreover, dry socket pain is a sharp, severe pain that will radiate into your ears and the rest of your jaw.
The tissue is a creamy white colour made of collagen, blood vessels and white blood cells. The formation of this tissue is a great sign! It means your socket is healing properly. Once a blood clot has formed and granulation tissue has appeared in your extraction site, you're well on the road to recovery!
Unpleasant Taste. Another common symptom of a dry socket is a bad or sour taste in your mouth. This can be one of the first signs of infection, so don't let that smell linger without taking swift action.
Coughing, sneezing, or spitting can also cause debris to fall into the open socket, causing a dry socket. Poor oral hygiene and touching the wound area increases the risk of developing dry sockets, as well as women who take birth control medication.
Who gets dry socket? Research shows that women are slightly more likely than men to develop dry socket. This is probably due to estrogen, as the hormone may dissolve blood clots. Additionally, dry socket happens more often on the lower jaw than the upper jaw.
Most infections will present within a few days after the tooth extraction. There are, however, some infections that can occur as late as 3-4 weeks after the procedure. Continue to pay close attention to your mouth and overall health to watch for signs that something could be wrong.