Root Canal:
- Please do not eat until the numbness wears out in a few hours if the anesthesia was given.
- The temporary filling will set in an hour. Please be careful not to disturb the setting of the temporary restoration.
- Expect soreness around the tooth and gum for a few days. If you can, taking over-the-counter pain medication such as Advil, Motrin (3 pills every 6 hours for 2 days) or Tylenol (2 Extra Strength every 6-8 hours for 2 days) can help to reduce the discomfort.
- Take the prescribed medications by the clock to ensure their effectiveness.
- Please avoid using the root canal treated tooth for chewing heavy food since doing so may cause discomfort or fracture. You may be careful eating with the tooth that received treatment until your general dentist completes the final restoration.
- Please refrain from applying unnecessary pressure or touch to the treated tooth with the tongue, finger or any object. This may cause prolonged sensitivity on the treated tooth.
- You may brush the treated tooth normally but should not floss if the temporary filling was placed in the space between teeth.
- Please call our office if you continue to experience the discomfort more than a few days after the treatment.
Sinus Lift:
- Do not forcefully blow your nose for at least 2 weeks, even though your sinus may feel “stuffy” or there may be some nasal drainage.
- Try not to sneeze; it will cause undesired sinus pressure. If you must sneeze, keep your mouth open.
- Do not drink with straw and do not spit.
- Do not rinse vigorously for several days. Gentle salt water swishes may be used.
- Do not smoke for several days.
- Take prescription medications as directed.
- Eat only soft foods for several days, always trying to chew on the opposite side. Slight bleeding from the nose is not uncommon for several days after surgery. Scuba diving and flying in pressurized aircrafts may also increase sinus pressure and should be avoided. Avoid “bearing down” – when lifting heavy objects, blowing up balloons, playing musical instruments that require a blowing action, or any other activity that increases nasal or oral pressure. Decongestants will help reduce pressure in the sinuses.
Implants and Extractions:
- The gauze pad placed over the surgical area should be kept in place for a half hour. Refer to the section on bleeding for more information.
- Vigorous mouth rinsing or touching the wound area following surgery should be avoided. This may initiate bleeding by causing the blood clot that has formed to become dislodged.
- Take the prescribed pain medications as soon as you begin to feel discomfort. This will usually coincide with the local anesthetic becoming diminished.
- Restrict your activities the day of surgery and resume normal activity when you feel comfortable.
- Place ice packs to the side of your face where surgery was performed. Refer to the section on Swelling for an explanation.
Commonly Happen after Surgery
- If numbness of the lip, chin, or tongue occurs there is no cause for alarm. As stated before surgery, this is usually temporary in nature. You should be aware that if your lip or tongue is numb, you could bite them without feeling it. So be careful when chewing.
- Slight elevation of temperature immediately following surgery is not uncommon. If the temperature persists, notify the office. Tylenol or ibuprofen should be taken to reduce the fever.
- In the event of nausea or vomiting following surgery, do not take anything by mouth for at least one hour, including the prescribed medication. You should then sip on tea or gingerale (no straw), slowly over a 15 minutes period. When the nausea subsides, you can begin taking liquids and the prescribed medication.
- Reabsorbable sutures are often placed to the area of surgery to minimize post-operative bleeding and to help healing. Since they are reabsorbable, they do not need to be removed. Sometimes they become dislodged, or they may slide out of the gum as they dissolve. This may case a little bleeding, but it is no cause for alarm. Just remove the sutures from your mouth and discard them.
- You should be careful going from the lying down position to standing. If you were sedated, you were not able to eat or drink prior to surgery. After surgery it was also difficult to take fluids. Taking pain medications can make you dizzy. You could get light headed when you stand up suddenly. Before standing up, you should sit for one minute, then get up.
- If the corners of the mouth are stretched, they may dry out and crack. Lips should be kept moist with an ointment such as vaseline. Sore throats and pain when swallowing are not uncommon. The muscles get swollen. The normal act of swallowing can then become painful. This will subside in 2-3 days.
- Stiffness (trismus) of the jaw muscles may cause difficulty in opening your mouth for a few days following surgery. This is a normal post-operative event which will resolve in time. Your case is individual, no two mouths are alike. Do not accept well intended advice from friends. Discuss your questions with Dr. Horowitz or with his staff. They will effectively help you.