Leesal,

Having not seen your pre op xrays, I can only go by what you have shared here. So I cannot say whether what he did was right or wrong. I also do not know if he thoroughly debrided the bone or which surgical technique he used to prepare your jaw bone for the placement of the graft.

Let me explain why bone grafting is done in the first place. The graft, when properly placed in vital healthy bone, stimulates the cells to grow bone. The graft material integrates with the new bone making the new growth of bone more dense, thicker and higher.

I can tell you that it is very heroic to do bone grafting in areas where the teeth have been missing for 20 years for the sake of growing enough bone to place dental implants. Many things depend on the success of growing new bone..... such as how healthy that bone was to begin with; how much recession had already occurred; how well he prepared the bone and what type of grafting material he used. But even with the most skilled surgeon, it is still heroic to try and establish new growth of bone in the jaw where teeth have been missing for 20 years.

You also had an infected tooth extracted at the time all of this grafting surgery was done. The infection from the tooth may have spread past the tooth, prior to the extraction, which could mean that the bacteria was still present in the bone when the grafting was done. This could be the reason why you developed a dry socket and why you have had so much pain this whole time. There may have been a better outcome if the infected tooth were removed, the socket (not the entire quadrant) was surgically debrided, no grafting was not done and you were put on antibiotics. If the extraction site healed well, then a month or so down the road the quadrant could have been surgerized, grafting placed and antibiotics prescribed again.

I have assisted on these surgeries many times. The best outcomes that I have seen are with the patients who have the infection removed, the healing from that goes well and then they proceed with the more extensive surgery, grafting, etc.

Please make sure you have all of your records for this new surgeon. The pre and post op xrays along with the surgical report will give him a clear dental history and clear understanding of what the other surgeon did, didn't do, and the graft material he used. All of which is imperative to know before someone can diagnose and prescribe a new treatment plan for you.

In the meantime, continue rinsing with the warm salt water and continue to use the warm moist compresses on the outside of your face. Be sure to drink lots of water throughout the day to help flush out the toxins from the infection and please eat a nutritious soft food diet.

Hopefully you will be able to maintain until monday. Please check in with us and certainly let us know what the new oral surgeon has to say.

Hang in there......
Bryanna