Hello,

So I got all 4 wisdom teeth removed last Friday (2/27). It's kind of been a total nightmare. First, I get in an infection (which is now taken care of I think) and now this. Let me explain...

As mentioned before, I got an infection about 48 hours after my surgery. Apparently it had to do with getting food/debris stuck in the back right extraction site. I ended up forming a ball of pus/fluid in my cheek which I had drained today. At this appointment, they also gave me a syringe to irrigate my lower extraction sites... So, after eating lunch I decided to try the syringe out. Upon cleaning my back left extraction site I guess I pressed on the syringe WAY too hard because I felt a tiny pinch and then it started bleeding. As I spit out the blood, there were also pieces of tissue, food, something I'm not really sure. I immediately freaked out and went back to the OS but everything checked out fine and they sent me home.

But.

I'm a huge worry wart so I grabbed a flash light & a mirror, pulled back my cheek and decided to look at what I'd done. Upon doing this, I notice that I can see something white. It's like there's a hole now. I'm so worried about getting dry socket. I'm afraid what I'm seeing is bone. My extraction site doesn't hurt but I don't know what else this white thing in this new hole/slit I have can be.

Could it be bone? Should I call my OS? Please help. I've already been through hell with the infection.

Sorry if any of this information is vague. I'll be happy to give more detail of needed.

Thank you,

Paula

Hi Paula,

I am in the dental field and can offer you some information here.

It is important to stick with a nutritious soft food diet until the extraction sites close over with gum tissue. Eggs, oatmeal, fruits and cooked vegetables including potatoes, steamed or baked chicken or fish, things of those consistency.

Avoid any food that requires a lot of chewing, requires you to open your mouth very wide, is small enough to get lodged in the wounds, or is spicy hot.

Examples of food to avoid .... a sandwich, hamburger on a bun, steak, rice, anything with seeds, peanut butter, things like that. Spicy foods can burn the surgical wounds and cause sores to develop. Sugary foods and drinks have no nutritional value, they compromise the immune system and slow down the healing. So best to avoid those things too. Smoking and alcohol cause irritation to the wounds and slow down the healing also.

Regarding using the irrigation syringe.... it is imperative that you only use salt water or plain warm water and use it very gently. It is meant to be a gentle irrigation not an aggressive rinsing. If you stick with a soft food diet, be mindful of not chewing all the way in the back and rinse your mouth with warm salt water 3-4 times a day, you will be less likely to get food debris trapped in the surgical wounds. The less irritation they have the faster the gum tissue will close them over.

The stuff that came out of the lower socket during the rinsing could have been nothing to worry about. However, you rinsed too aggressively and should avoid doing that again. The white area that you see in that hole could be the clotting tissue (it turns from red to white) or it could be bone. If you develop any pain or swelling in that area, or a fever or any feeling of being unwell, then it is best to then see the oral surgeon to evaluate it. Otherwise, consider doing the suggestions that I have given you and be less aggressive with the irrigation and you should be okay.

Feel free to ask more questions if you have them...
Bryanna

Thank you! I feel a bit relieved... I'm praying it's not bone that I see. Thank you for all the advice. I am so on-edge about this wisdom teeth thing since I found out I had an infection that I overcompensated and was way too aggressive when irrigating my extraction sites. I'll definitely take it easy now.

Also, it's weird. It's like that side that had the infection (the right side) has healed faster because the slit I mentioned in my previous post has grown over with new tissue on the right side, whereas the left side (I just got the stitches out of the left side today, btw) is still open. I've taken a picture so you can kind of see/understand where I mean. EDIT: I can't post links or post pictures

This is the left side. I'm not sure if you can tell, but the dark hole (near my filling on my bottom tooth) is where it's open and the spot in which if I pulled my cheek further, I can see the white.

Anyways. I'm sorry. I'm rambling. I'm just really nervous about not only my healing infection, but also now the potential of getting food stuck in my left extraction site. Is it normal to have this slit/opening thing? And is it normal for either side to heal at such different rates?

Maybe none of this makes sense. Ahh. Sorry.

Thank you so much for any information you can give me.

OK, to clarify my previous post... What I think I mean is that the wisdom teeth hole extraction site is (for the most part) closed up with tissue on the right and still pretty much open on the left... I'm seven days post-op. Is this normal?

Hi Reallyworried,
Welcome to NeuroTalk.

I see you had difficulty posting a picture. You should be able to post attachments just fine.

Here is the information about how to do that from the FAQ.


http://neurotalk.psychcentral.com/fa...b3_attachments


.

Paula,

The oral wound from an extracted tooth can be open for several weeks. Everyone heals differently and each extraction site heals at a different pace. The gum tissue eventually closes the wound but the bone takes about a year to completely fill in. So there is a lot of healing that goes on after a tooth is extracted.

I would suggest that you stop pulling your cheek on the left side causing the tissue to open over/near the wound. Every time you do that you break the connective fibrous tissue and it has to reform all over again. It's similar to having a deep cut that is trying to close and you keep spreading it open. Just be mindful of your diet, be careful eating and be sure to rinse your mouth with warm salt water 3-4 times a day for the next couple of weeks. If at any time you develop pain, swelling, or symptoms of being ill, go in to see the oral surgeon.

I hope this helps.
Bryanna