- Pain after a tooth extraction - how long does it last?
- How to relieve pain after a tooth extraction?
- Pain after a tooth extraction - how to recognize complications?
Pain after a tooth extraction is nothing to worry about if you feel it for a while after the anesthesia has worn off. On the other hand, the pain after a tooth extraction, which does not disappear, and even intensifies, should be disturbing - or the pain that occurs only some time after the extraction. What does the pain after a tooth extraction show? In what cases can pain after tooth extraction indicate complications? How to relieve pain after a tooth extraction and when it is necessary to visit the dentist again?
Pain after a tooth extractionis completely natural - it is a direct effect of tooth extraction, during which there is e.g. to irritate surrounding tissues and nerves. We usually start to feel it about an hour or two after the procedure, when the effects of anesthetics gradually fade away. Usually, the pain after a tooth extraction disappears within the next two or three days, although it usually happens much faster.
However, it may happen that the pain after a tooth extraction does not go away: the complaints are the same or even intensify. Occasionally, other disturbing symptoms may also accompany them, such as bad breath or a strange aftertaste. Such a situation requires urgent contact with a dentist.
How long does the pain last after a tooth extraction, how to alleviate it, how to know that the pain after tooth extraction is related to the complications that occurred after the procedure?
Pain after a tooth extraction - how long does it last?
How long does it takepain after a tooth extraction ? It depends on the size of the tooth, the degree of difficulty of the procedure, the condition of the surrounding tissues, as well as the individual sensitivity and the speed at which the wound heals. After a tooth is extracted, a cavity forms in the gum - the larger the tooth that had to be removed, the larger the tooth.
Sometimes the dentist also has to incision the gum, which further increases the wound surface. All this has an impact on how quickly the wound heals after tooth extraction, and therefore on how long we feel pain after extraction.
The rule is that the pain after a tooth extraction starts to feel right after the anesthesia has worn off. It usually lasts for about two or three days, although it is also normal that it lasts much longer - even two to three weeks, when a clot forms in the wound and the tissues gradually heal.
Pain afterA tooth extraction may be felt only at the extraction site, but it also happens that it radiates into the ear or covers the entire jaw, and the gums are tender and swollen. As time goes on, the pain should get weaker.
How to relieve pain after a tooth extraction?
Pain after a tooth extractioncan be relieved with commonly available painkillers based on paracetamol or ibuprofen. However, medications containing acetylsalicylic acid should be avoided because it thins the blood, which hinders the formation of a clot and the healing of the wound after extraction.
Cool compresses that should be applied to the cheek in the area of the torn tooth wound can also be helpful - cold constricts the blood vessels and reduces swelling in this area, which in turn reduces nerve conduction and reduces pain. You can use, for example, compresses with cryogel or ice cubes wrapped in a piece of fabric.
After consulting a dentist, you can also use anesthetic ointments or sprays. Oral rinses with antibacterial properties and accelerating tissue reconstruction can also be helpful - they can be used no earlier than 3 days after the procedure to avoid rinsing out the clot formed in the wound.
Pain after a tooth extraction - how to recognize complications?
However, it may happen that the pain after a tooth extraction does not only persist, but even intensifies - it is strong, pulsating, and other symptoms such as unpleasant smell from the mouth or a strange aftertaste are also added. Such a situation may indicate that there have been complications in the form of e.g. a dry socket (which forms when there is no clot in the tooth extraction bed) or a strong inflammation.
The pain is so severe that oral painkillers are unable to provide relief. It is necessary to visit a dentist as soon as possible, who will rinse the socket and put on a dressing.
A severe pain radiating into the ear or a severe headache that may be associated with recent surgery - may be related to radiation along the branch of the trigeminal nerve, should also prompt a visit to the dentist as soon as possible.
Pain after a tooth extraction, which appears in the area subjected to the procedure a few months earlier, should also provoke a consultation with a dentist - its cause may be, for example, bone fragments left inside the cavity after the removed tooth or periapical changes, which may be the cause inflammation in the tissue. The dentist should then perform not only an intraoral examination, but also an imaging examination - an X-ray of the tooth.