Smoking after Tooth Extraction
For anyone, needing to have a tooth removed is not ideal. A few days of pain and swelling, followed by the discomfort of having a missing tooth is not something anyone would look forward to. But for smokers, the tooth extraction maple grove minnesota experience can be uniquely difficult. If your dentist is encouraging you to have a tooth extracted for one of many possible reasons and you are a regular smoker, your dentist will recommend that you temporarily stop using tobacco after the procedure. For a regular smoker, it can be very challenging to temporarily stop using tobacco. A dentist will recommend that a smoker abstains from using tobacco for at least 72 hours, or 3 days, after oral surgery including extraction procedures.
Why Tooth Extraction
There are many reasons why you may need to have a tooth removed. If your tooth is infected, has caused shifting of your other teeth, or you have wisdom teeth that are coming in with issues you may need to have a tooth extracted. After your dentist suggests you need to have a tooth extracted it is important to be prepared and informed of everything that is involved in the recovery process, including taking a break from smoking and tobacco use for a short period of time.
Why is it Important to Not Smoke After Tooth Extraction?
Cigarette smoke contains chemical toxins that can delay healing and be dangerous to your gum and mouth tissues. If you smoke and expose your healing gums to these toxins it can result in serious complications, including dry socket, inflammation, or infection.
- Dry socket: even if the name is strange, dry socket is a fairly dangerous condition. This condition is the result of the exposure of the underlying bone and nerves that have been exposed with the tooth being removed. A dry socket can be identified by a bad smell, and severe pain that can spread from the tooth socket to the entire side of the face. The socket can become swollen and inflamed. Trying to eat and having food or beverages touch the exposed and swollen socket can add to this pain. Dry sockets typically develop 1-3 days after the tooth extraction procedure. If you make it past 3 days without pain or symptoms of dry socket you may be in the clear and on your way to healing.
- Blood clot loss: the process of inhaling and exhaling air while smoking can create issues with the newly formed blot clots. The forming of blood clots is the first step in the healing process. If a blood clot comes loose it can also end up leading to dry socket. Why is this a problem? The blood clot has a very important function of serving as a protective layer that covers the recently exposed bone and never endings. The clot is also the foundation of growth for new soft tissue and bone in the socket.
If you choose to smoke and experience inflammation, dry sockets, or issues with blood clots, over-the-counter medications alone will not be enough to treat these conditions. You will need to call your dentist or oral surgeon and discuss with them your symptoms and possible treatment options.
More About Tooth Extractions : Wisdom Tooth Extraction