You have been treated by one of our oral and maxillofacial surgeons here at Reinier de Graaf Gasthuis in Delft. In this folder you will find information about what you can expect after the procedure.

Eating, drinking, smoking and alcohol

The first six hours after the procedure it is better not to drink very hot or very cold drinks. It is best to eat softer food to give the wound some rest. Don’t smoke or drink alcohol for the first few days after the procedure as this is bad for the recovery of the wound.

Hygiene

The wound will heal best when the blood can solidify. It is important you don’t rinse the mouth after the procedure as the wound can open up again. After 24 hours you can brush your teeth normally again and rinse the mouth with lukewarm salt water (1⁄2 a teaspoon of salt in 1 cup of lukewarm water).

Pain and swelling

Swelling and bruising after the procedure is normal. What you can do to prevent some swelling is to ice the swollen area with an ice pack or something else from the freezer (don’t place directly on the skin). If the swelling doesn’t go down within 4 to 5 days, or even gets worse, this could point to an infection. If the swelling doesn’t go down or you have a fever you need to call with the assistants from the oral surgery department.

It is normal to experience pain after the procedure. This can last up to 5 days. The local anesthetics last around 2-4 hours. It is best to start with painkillers before the local anesthetics have worn out. The best way treat to the pain is by using paracetamol or the prescribed painkillers.

Fever

A fever, even up to 39 ºC, in the first few days is normal. If you get a fever higher than 39 ºC or stays longer than 5 days above 38,5 ºC please contact us.

Bleeding

During the first few days some of the blood clots can turn your saliva red which will give the impression that the wound is still bleeding, this is usually not the case. If the wound is still bleeding there will be more blood than saliva. In this case what you need to do is bite down on a folded up gauze or handkerchief for half an hour. Don’t use a cotton ball and don’t remove the gauze halfway through to check the bleeding. It is best to keep pressure on the wound. Repeat this procedure twice. If this still doesn’t help you need to contact us.

Stitches

The stitches are usually dissolvable and should dissolve after 1 to 2 weeks. If they don’t dissolve you can contact us and we will remove them for you. Sometimes the stitches come loose earlier, it is usually not necessary to redo these.

In some situations the roots of the upper teeth are in contact with the paranasal sinus. If these teeth are removed it is possible that a connection is made between the sinus and mouth. To reduce the chance of infection the wound needs to be closed off with stitches. It is important to avoid pressure differences between nose and mouth to avoid the wound from opening up again. Don’t blow your nose and keep your mouth open while sneezing. The first 2 days it is possible that you notice some blood coming from the nose. This is normal and stops by itself.

Anesthetics

The local anesthetics doesn’t influence your ability to drive but it is advisable to only take part of traffic when you’re feeling better. Sometimes a tingling feeling remains in the lower lip after the anesthetics have worn out. In this case you need to contact us. In most cases the feeling returns within 2-8 weeks by itself.

Contact

For any other questions feel free to call us. We are available between 8:30-12:00 and 13:00-16:30 at 015 - 260 38 11
In case of emergencies outside of office hours you can contact your general practitioner or dentist or call 015 - 260 30 60