Now that you and the dentist have determined that the best treatment plan for your long-term dental health is your wisdom tooth removal, you need to review some possible complications from the surgery.  It is important to remember that this is a surgery with possible complications but the possible complications from avoiding the surgery are worse. There are five common complications you should talk about with the dentist.

1. Pain and Swelling

Any time you consider having surgery of any kind, there will be the risk of pain and swelling.  The degree of pain varies from person to person and can be affected by the complication of the location of the tooth.  If the dentist needs to remove the tooth from under your jaw bone, you are more likely to have more pain and more swelling than the person whose tooth was already erupted above the gum.  The body uses swelling to help the healing process and to protect it from infection.  If the body needs to heal bone and gum, it may experience more swelling.  Swelling and pain can be affected by family traits and any medications you are currently using so be sure to share family medical history and medication history with your dentist.  Your pain and swelling should decrease within a day or two after surgery and should be managed by the medications prescribed by or recommended the dentist

2. Excessive Bleeding

Immediately following surgery, most people find that they experience excessive bleeding that tapers off within a day or two.  The best way to minimize bleeding is to avoid smoking, exercising and strenuous activity, and rinsing your mouth.  All of these activities can disrupt the blood clots forming at the extraction sites.

3. Alveolar Osteitis (Dry Socket)

As we mentioned above, an important part of the healing process for your mouth is the formation of blood clots at the extraction sites. These clots function as a scab over the wound slowing bleeding, keeping the wound moist and protecting the wound from foreign particles and infection.  If the blood clot is knocked out of place, then the result is a dry socket.  Dry sockets cause pulsing pain in the jaw, an unpleasant taste in that portion of your mouth and even a smell from that spot.  If you find that you have these symptoms, reach out to the dentist to see about alternative ways to help your mouth heal from surgery.

4. Lip Numbness

In your mouth, the wisdom teeth are located near the inferior alveolar nerve which affects the feelings in your lips.  Depending on the extraction procedure, complications can lead to nerve damage.  In some instances, the nerve damage spontaneously repairs and the sensation in the lips returns.

5. Limited Mouth Opening

During your procedure, the dentist may need to keep your mouth open for a prolonged period of time due to the location of your teeth in your jaw.  As a result, you may experience trismus or a limited ability to open your mouth. During recovery, if you find that your jaw is taking longer to return to normal, be sure to talk to the dentist about exercises and other options.

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