Post Op Instructions

DENTAL IMPLANT CARE INSTRUCTIONS

Dental implants have been placed in your mouth. The implants may be located above or below the tissue. This type of implant has been selected for your particular situation because of the bone available to place an implant. Here are some things to expect after your surgery:

Numbness: Your mouth will be numb approximately two to four hours. Do not bite, scratch, or injure the cheek, lips, or tongue during this time. You can carefully drink little sips of water during this time but avoid eating. Please call our office if your numbness has persisted more than a day.

 Bleeding: Some bleeding is expected after surgery. We ensure that initial clotting has been achieved when you are dismissed from the office. You may continue to experience some bleeding for next 24-48 hours especially when you spit. It is advised to swallow most of your saliva as spitting can promote bleeding. If you notice you have a mouth full of blood, please pack the bleeding site with extra gauze and bite under pressure for 20-30 minutes. You may notice some bruising of you face or neck which is not unusual. Please call our office immediately if bleeding continues.

Swelling: Some swelling is expected which may get worse in 24-48 hours and then typically starts to subside. Using cold packs after surgery help reduce swelling. If your swelling has not reduced after 72 hours, please call our office.

Medication: Following medications are typically prescribed/recommended:

  1. Pain: Mild to moderate degree of pain is expected after implant surgery. Your dentist may prescribe prescription pain meds of over-the-counter medicines for pain management.

  2. Antibiotics: Prophylactic Antibiotics may be prescribed after implant surgery and your dentist may consider a loading dose prior to your surgery. Please follow directions on the prescription.

  3. Mouthwash: Chlorhexidine mouthwash may also be prescribed. You will GENTLY rinse 3 times daily starting the first night with 10 ml of the mouthwash for 30-60 seconds and then spit. Use this for 2 weeks.

Diet: For the first 2-3 days, soft, non-chewy diet is advised. After that, you can gradually resume your normal diet seeing your comfort. You may avoid the side of surgery for a few days. Avoid hot and very cold beverages during this period. Avoid drinking through straws. 

Smoking/Alcohol: Avoid smoking and alcohol for 2-3 days. Smoking in general will reduce chances of implant success. 

Hygiene: You can resume your routine oral care from next morning. Brush and rinse gently around the area of surgery for a few days until comfortable to brush normally. 

Activity: Its best to take rest for 2-3 days and avoid exercise, heavy lifting and strenuous work during this time.

Implants With Dentures: It is best practice to avoid eating/chewing with dentures over implants to reduce pressure on the implants, which may interfere with healing and may cause some bone loss around implants. If you have implants placed under a denture, you may be advised to avoid chewing with your dentures for the first 2 weeks. You may continue with a soft diet after that for another 2-4 weeks. At this point, you should be able to resume your normal denture diet.  Your dentures will be soft relined to improve their fit.

Sutures/Follow Up: We will do an initial follow up in 10-14 days for suture removal and to evaluate healing. If sutures are irritating your tongue, lip or cheeks, you can gently apply some Vaseline over them or call us for further instructions. A second follow up will be done in 3-4 months to evaluate for placement of final prosthesis. 

IMMEDIATE DENTURE CARE

Pain and Swelling– It is best to leave the immediate dentures in place for 24 hours after your teeth have been removed. The dentures will act as a bandage to protect the extraction sites and to prevent swelling. The dentures will limit the bleeding and swelling with their splinting. Ice packs placed on the face in the extraction areas for 10- 15 minute intervals will help minimize the pain. Please follow pain medication instructions as prescribed by your doctor.

Rinsing– DO NOT RINSE YOUR MOUTH in the first 24 hours, as this may dislodge the clots in the tooth socket. The result is a dry socket, which can be very painful. This rarely happens but when it does, it is usually the result of smoking. If you feel the need to remove the dentures, remember to rinse them quickly with cold water and reinsert immediately. If you cannot insert the denture, wait for your dentist to help you. It is recommended that you place a towel on your pillow, because it is normal to have some oozing of blood.

Diet- In the first 24 hours, your diet should consist of non- carbonated, cold beverages (i.e. ice tea) and soft foods. Progress diet as healing allows.

Denture and Mouth Care– (AFTER INITIAL 24 HOURS), Use a denture brush that is contoured to clean your denture and an ADA approved denture- cleaning solution. Clean dentures twice a day. When the denture is out of your mouth, place it in water to prevent the acrylic from drying out. Rinse your mouth twice a day with Perio- Med. Do not wear your denture at night. Exposure to oxygen is best for your gums.

Bite– in the first 24 hours, the dentures may not feel right. You may also experience salivation and gagging for the first few days. Your dentist will adjust your denture over the next couple of appointments. Remember the way your teeth and bone were actually contoured by the dentist may be slightly different from the way the lab contoured the immediate denture on the initial model taken from your impressions. Please be patient as you heal. The doctor and his staff will help you adjust to your new prosthesis.

Healing– Over the next 3- 4 months, you will have many changes in your mouth. Remember the removal of teeth involves bones and bone requires 3 months to completely heal, (like hip surgery). At the drugstore, you can purchase denture adhesive, (any kind will work), which will help hold the denture in place while you heal.

Chewing- You will learn to chew your food on both sides of your mouth with your dentures. You will learn to master this quickly if you like to eat. There are four major muscles and several minor muscles associated with chewing and they will adapt over time to your prosthesis.

Speech– You may notice a lisp or slurring of your speech in the first days of wearing your denture. This is normal and will disappear as you adjust to your denture.

Esthetics– For many people, a denture is replacing stained or diseased teeth. The denture will not only help you feel healthier but will help you look better.

REMEMBER– the lower denture is held in place by your tongue and your cheeks. Some patients can master this technique quickly and for others it takes some time. You will never have complete seating of the lower denture because there is no possibility of “suction” like that obtained in the upper denture. For some patients with a large amount of bone loss, a small amount of adhesive will always be necessary.