Smoking After Wisdom Teeth Removal

Having your wisdom teeth extracted is an extremely common dental procedure. Your wisdom teeth, or third molars, are the last adult teeth to develop and usually appear between the ages of 17 and 25. Most people do not have space in their mouth to accommodate these molars without extreme crowding or other dental issues.

Recovery from wisdom tooth extraction can take up to a week depending on your individual health and the extent of your procedure. If your wisdom teeth are impacted, meaning they have not erupted through the gums, your surgery and recovery time may be more extensive.

Day of Surgery

Having your wisdom teeth extracted is an outpatient surgery, meaning you will go home the same day. Some treatment is able to be completed under local anesthesia but sometimes, general anesthesia is needed. If you do require general anesthesia, your doctor may advise or require that you have someone else available to drive you home.

Immediately following surgery, some pain and swelling is completely normal. Your doctor will likely give you pain medications that should be taken only as needed. Some patients are able to manage the pain with over-the-counter medications. You will be also be given antibiotics which should be taken as directed and in full to avoid infection.

For the first few days after surgery, it is extremely important that you eat only soft foods, avoid alcohol and caffeine, and smoking should definitely be avoided for up to seven days to avoid complications.

Signs that you are developing an infection or other complication include:

  • trouble swallowing or breathing
  • fever
  • medication is not effective at calming pain
  • swelling that worsens over time
  • numbness
  • blood or pus coming out of your nose
  • bleeding that does not stop when you apply pressure

 

Home care and common cleaning instructions include:

  • Rinsing with warm salt water will help with swelling and keep the wound clean. You can do this as often as you like, it is especially beneficial after eating. Do not spit the water out when you rinse, instead, lean over the sink and let the water spill out.
  • If you experience light bleeding, gently dab the wound with gauze to absorb the blood.
  • You will want to be very careful not to dislodge your blood clot or stitches for a week to avoid dry socket. The blood over your extracted wisdom tooth site protects and heals the wound. If the blot clot is disrupted, you will experience increased pain and be at a higher risk of infection.

Long-term Recovery After Wisdom Tooth Extraction

Full recovery from wisdom teeth surgery takes about three to seven days, depending on the extent of your surgery. The wound left behind after surgery will not be fully healed for a couple of months, so you can still develop an infection weeks after surgery. The day after surgery, you can resume regular daily activities as long as you avoid any activities that could dislodge stitches or the blood clot including, but not limited to:

  • strenuous exercise such as weight lifting
  • smoking
  • spitting
  • drinking from a straw

Your symptoms should begin to subside greatly by day three and all pain and bleeding should be gone by day seven. Call your dentist immediately if the pain or bleeding is excessive.

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