After Placement of Dental Implants & Grafting
The following instructions are intending to help you through the period following your surgery and to facilitate your healing process. Some of the instructions may not be relevant to your particular case.
Upon Leaving Our Office: You will have gauze packs over your surgical sites. Replace these every 45-60 minutes or as needed with fresh moistened gauze until bleeding stops or is minimal.
Swelling: Swelling is typical and may increase for 2-3 days post-operative. Apply ice packs to areas of face over surgical sites as much as possible for the first 24-48 hours.
Diet: Confine chewing to areas away from the surgical site, and maintain a soft diet for a period of time to allow adequate healing. You will be given instructions regarding this by your doctor.
Antibiotics: You will most likely be given a prescription for an antibiotic to help prevent infection. Follow your doctors instructions on how to take this medication. Make sure to finish the entire course of antibiotics, unless instructed differently by your doctor.
Dentures: Your doctor will give you individualized instructions on when/if you should wear your denture.
Pain: Pain is expected the first 2-5 days with the peak typically about 2-3 days. Often times an over-the-counter pain reliever such as Aleve® is sufficient. To best manage discomfort, pain medication should be taken prior to the local anesthetic wearing off. The prescription pain medication can cause nausea; this can be minimized if you precede each pill with a small amount of food.
If you are requiring more of the pain medicine than is indicated by the directions on the bottle, please call our office Cornelius Office Phone Number 704-892-1198 (Mon-Thurs 8-5 and Fridays 8-1). Please note: We can no longer call in narcotic pain medications. You must physically pick up a prescription during normal office hours.
Sinus Lift: It is imperative you Do not blow your nose or drink through a straw for the first several weeks (this can dislodge the graft). If you must sneeze do so with your mouth open. It is common for you to have some sinus congestion and/or nasal bleeding on the side of the sinus graft for 7-10 days after surgery. You will either be given a prescription for a decongestant or asked to purchase an over-the-counter medication.
Sutures: Sutures have been placed to close the surgical site(s). Resorbable sutures will dissolve in 5-7 days; non- resorbable sutures will be removed at your post-op appointment.
Oral Hygiene: Maintaining good oral hygiene after surgery is one of the most important things you can do for yourself. Brush gently and rinse as needed after each meal. Peroxide-based mouth rinses such as Peroxyl (available in drugstores) work very well in keeping the surgical site(s) clean.
