Part 2 book “A practical guide to the management of impacted teeth” has contents: Complications of impaction surgery, complications of impaction surgery, modalities of management of impacted canine, modalities of management of impacted canine, management of impacted mandibular canine, unerupted and impacted supernumerary teeth, and other contents. | 114 A Practical Guide to the Management of Impacted Teeth 11 Postoperative Care and Instructions POSTOPERATIVE CARE Proper written or oral instruction in essential not only for the over all success of the surgical procedure but also for a smooth postoperative period. The patient and the by stander should be informed that unnecessary pain and complications like infection, bleeding and swelling can be minimized if the instructions are followed carefully. Immediately Following Surgery • Bite on the gauze pad placed over the surgical site for an hour. After this time, the gauze pad should be removed and discarded. It may be replaced by another gauze pad if there is bleeding. • Avoid vigorous mouth rinsing or touching the wound area following surgery. This may initiate bleeding by dislodging the blood clot that has formed. • To minimize swelling, place ice packs to the side of the face where surgery was performed. • Take the prescribed pain medications as soon as possible so that it is digested before the local anesthetic effect has worn off. Avoid taking medications in empty stomach to avoid nausea and gastritis. • Restrict activities on the day of surgery and resume normal activity when one is comfortable. Excessive physical activity may initiate bleeding. • Do not smoke under any circumstances. Bleeding • A certain amount of bleeding is to be expected following surgery. On the skin where the surface is • • • • dry, blood clots within a few minutes. But in the mouth where things are wet, it takes 6-8 hours for the clot to form and the bleeding to subside. Slight bleeding or oozing causing redness in the saliva is very common. For this reason, the gauze will always appear red when it is removed. Saliva washes over the blood clot and dyes the gauze red even after bleeding from the socket has actually stopped. Excessive bleeding may be controlled by first gently rinsing with ice cold water or wiping any old clots from the mouth and then placing a gauze pad over
