How to Take Care of Your Teeth After an Extraction

Are you going to have wisdom tooth removal? You may wonder if you can have alcohol after tooth extraction, or what you are allowed to eat. Whether you have an impacted canine tooth or some other sort of impacted tooth removal surgery scheduled, here’s what you need to know about how to take care of yourself after tooth extraction.

The First 24 Hours

This day will set the tone for all the rest of your healing. On this day, you want to concentrate on a couple of important things:

1. 1. Controlling the bleeding

1. 1. Protecting the blood clot that forms after the tooth is removed

1. 1. Minimizing your pain

1. 1. What to eat and drink

1. 1. Cleaning your teeth

1. Using any medications you have been given

Controlling Bleeding

It is important to get bleeding under control as soon as possible. Once your tooth is removed, the oral surgeon will give you some gauze to bite down on. Bleeding may start up again during the next 24 hours. If it does, use a fresh piece of moistened gauze in the same way. If the bleeding persists beyond the first 24 hours or there’s a lot of blood, contact your dentist.

Protecting the Clot

When you’ve had a tooth extraction, it’s important to protect the blood clot that forms over the spot where the tooth was removed. Make sure that you don’t rinse out your mouth for the first 24 hours. You should also avoid spitting or doing anything that would create a negative pressure, such as sucking or blowing. This means no drinking through straws, no smoking, no playing musical instruments, and no blowing up balloons. If you find that you have to sneeze, be sure to do so with your mouth open.

Minimizing Pain

While it might be tempting to try alcohol after tooth extraction as a way of minimizing pain, that’s not really your best bet here. For pain control, the best option is to use the minimum amount of pain reliever necessary in order to control your discomfort.

Most of the time, ibuprofen is the best way to control pain after you have had a tooth extraction. If you can’t use ibuprofen, acetaminophen is another possibility. It’s not a good idea to use aspirin as aspirin can exacerbate bleeding problems. For serious extractions, some oral surgeons may give you prescription pain medications.

Food and Drink

In the first 24 hours you should not have alcohol after tooth extraction. You should also not drink any alcohol after tooth extraction while you are taking narcotic pain relievers or certain antibiotics.

You should avoid eating anything or drinking anything except prescribe medication for the first hour after a tooth extraction. For the next 23 hours, stay hydrated with lots of liquids.

Cleaning

It’s not necessary to brush your teeth for the first 24 hours after you have a tooth extraction. If you really want to do so anyway, carefully clean your teeth, stopping well short of the area where you had the tooth removed and do not rinse your mouth.

Medications

Your oral surgeon may give you medication to take home. These could be prescribed antibiotics or painkillers. Make sure you understand how to take all your medication and get instructions in writing. If you’re taking any narcotics or antibiotics, it’s possible they may cause stomach upset. Find out if you should take them on a full stomach to help avoid this issue.

After 24 Hours

After the first 24 hours there are a few things you’ll need to do to take care of your mouth.

Protect

Favor the other side of your mouth when chewing or doing anything that might hurt the extraction site. Avoid any kind of sucking or blowing motion for at least a week.

Eating

Alcohol after tooth extraction is okay, but only after the first week. Drink plenty of fluids and favor softer foods for seven days. Both food and drinks should be cool. Avoid too much sugar and don’t eat anything that’s crunchy or that might tear up your mouth.

Follow these instructions, be gentle with your teeth for a few days, and you’ll be over your tooth extraction in no time.