After Placement of Dental Implants

Do not disturb the wound. Avoid rinsing, spitting, or touching the wound on the day of surgery. Also keep your tongue away from the surgical area. There will be a metal healing abutment protruding through the gingival (gum) tissue.

Bleeding

Some bleeding or redness in the saliva is normal for 24 hours. Excessive bleeding (your mouth fills up rapidly with blood) can be controlled by biting on a gauze pad placed directly on the bleeding wound for 30 minutes. If bleeding continues please call for further instructions.

Swelling

Swelling is a normal occurrence after surgery. To minimize swelling, apply an ice bag, or a plastic bag, or towel filled with ice on the cheek in the area of surgery. A bag of frozen peas or corn can also work well. Apply the ice 20 minutes on every hour, for the first 24- 36 hours.

Diet

Drink plenty of fluids. Avoid hot liquids or food. Soft food and liquids should be eaten on the day of surgery. Avoid the direct surgical area and favor the opposite side while chewing. Return to a normal diet as soon as you can unless otherwise directed.

Pain

You should begin taking pain medication as soon as you feel the local anesthetic wearing off. For moderate pain, 1-2 Extra Strength Tylenol may be taken every 4-6 hours as needed. Do not exceed 4000mg in a 24 hour period. Ibuprofen (Advil or Motrin) may be taken instead of Tylenol. Ibuprofen, bought over the counter comes in 200 mg tablets: 2-3 tablets may be taken every 4-6 hours as needed for pain. Do not exceed 3200mg in a 24hour period. For severe pain, the prescribed medication should be taken as directed. While taking the prescibed narcotic, you should not take Tylenol as the prescription contains this medication already. Do not take any of the above medication if you are allergic, or have been instructed by your doctor not to take it.

Antibiotics

Be sure to take the prescribed antibiotics as directed to help prevent infection until gone.

Oral Hygiene

Good oral hygiene is essential to good healing. Three days following surgery, the Peridex should be used twice daily, after breakfast and before bed. Be sure to rinse for at least 30 seconds then spit it out. Warm salt water rinses (teaspoon of salt in a cup of warm water) should be used at least 4-5 times a day the day following sugery, especially after meals. No rinsing the day of surgery. Brushing your teeth is no problem the following day after surgery. Be gentle initially with brushing and avoid the surgical areas.

Activity

Keep physical activities to a minimum immediately following surgery. If you are considering exercise, throbbing or bleeding may occur. If this occurs, you should discontinue exercising. Keep in mind that you are probably not taking normal nourishment. This may weaken you and further limit your ability to exercise.

Wearing your Prosthesis

Partial dentures, flippers, or full dentures should be used only as directed by the doctor and generally should only be used for cosmetic purposes. These prostheses should be kept out at night. This was discussed in the pre-operative consultation.