What to Do After Tooth Extraction?

1. Above all, stay calm after getting a tooth pulled and follow your dentist’s advice carefully—it’s very important.

2. Don’t eat for 2 hours. On the same day, stick to soft, liquid, or semi-liquid food that’s warm or cool (no hard or hot stuff). Chew on the other side.

3. Don’t rinse your mouth or spit too much the day of—this prevents bleeding or infection. Don’t keep sucking or spitting out the blood clot because of the blood taste, or the wound won’t heal.

4. No toothbrushing, sucking the wound, or playing wind instruments on the same day.

5. A little blood in saliva within a week is normal. Go to the hospital right away if bleeding doesn’t stop.

6. Take it easy—less exercise and talking on the day of extraction. Skip alcohol, cigarettes, and spicy food.

7. If you have stitches in your mouth from the extraction, they can usually be taken out after 4–5 days.

8. Keep an eye on the wound. Get medical help fast if there’s heavy bleeding. Bite the gauze or cotton ball on the wound for about 30 minutes before spitting it out—don’t bite too hard or too long. A small amount of blood in saliva in 24 hours is okay.

9. You usually don’t need antibiotics for simple extractions. But you must take them by mouth if you had a wisdom tooth pulled or the extraction was traumatic; if symptoms get worse, you might need IV antibiotics.

10. Use mouthwash the day of your routine extraction: swish 5ml of undiluted mouthwash in your mouth for 5 minutes, then spit it out (no need to rinse with water). Do this several times a day. Keep using it the next day to feel better after surgery.

11. Unless it’s a wisdom tooth or an extra tooth, adults usually need dentures after extraction. Get them fitted about 2 months later (not for impacted teeth) to stop nearby teeth from leaning.

12. Rest sitting up a bit—don’t lie flat or take a hot bath right away, or the wound might bleed.