Gum pain after tooth extraction - causes, treatment, where to go

Tooth extraction is not a pleasant process. Painful sensations and swelling of the gums after extraction of a tooth are an adequate response of the body to the operation. Usually, unpleasant symptoms increase 3-4 hours after the effect of the anesthetic drug wears off. Normally, pain, swelling, redness of the mucous membrane after a conventional extraction are observed for another 2-3 days; after a complex extraction, symptoms persist for 3-5 days. If your gums hurt after tooth extraction after 7 days or longer, you need a medical examination.

Why does my gum hurt?

Unexpressed aching pain and slight swelling of the gums appear due to injuries to soft tissues, nerves, and jaw bone when removing a tooth from its bed. The gum tissue swells, the nerve endings are compressed, hence the pain. How much your gums hurt after tooth extraction depends on:

Patient's pain sensitivity;
degree of complexity of the intervention;
features of the clinical case;
location of the dental unit (after extraction of molars, the injury is greater, the pain lasts longer);
state of immunity.

The body’s normal response from the development of complications is distinguished by the following properties: the pain does not intensify, pathological symptoms are present for no more than 7 days, and no other signs of deterioration in well-being are observed.

How to speed up wound healing after tooth extraction -

The best remedy that can speed up the healing of the gums after tooth extraction is the placement of sutures on the socket of the extracted tooth by a surgeon immediately after the tooth is extracted. Moreover, it is necessary that the edges of the gum mucosa be as close to each other as possible. This will speed up healing and reduce the risk of inflammation in the socket of the extracted tooth. But if you have already had a tooth removed without stitches, then topical oral products may help (see below).

Additional topical products - patients often ask if there is an ointment for healing wounds after tooth extraction... If you are not satisfied with how long it takes for the gums to heal after tooth extraction, then this process can really be accelerated. Rapid healing of wounds in the oral cavity is possible with the use of agents that accelerate the epithelization of wounds on the mucous membrane. These means include -

Solcoseryl in gel form,
Solcoseryl in the form of dental paste,
Actovegin in the form of 20% gel.

It should be noted that these drugs also have a good analgesic effect. You can read about the specifics of their use after tooth extraction using the links above, but if you are a fan of “grandmother’s” remedies, then regular sea buckthorn oil may also come in handy (although its effect will be noticeably more modest).

How long does your gum hurt after tooth extraction?

Normally, after 1-3 days, tissue swelling gradually decreases, pain goes away, and health improves. Already on the 3-4th day, the blood clot is gradually replaced by granulate, and after a week it fills the entire hole. After tooth extraction in the upper jaw, the recovery time is identical to the lower jaw, but bone regeneration in the upper dentition occurs more slowly.

In some clinical cases, the surgeon may cut the gum and drill out the jaw bone. Typically, such manipulations accompany the extraction of the outer eighth molars (wisdom teeth). Then healing takes longer than after a simple operation.

If 5-7 days after the intervention the pain does not decrease, but rather becomes more intense, you should consult a doctor. Acute, nagging, constant pain after tooth extraction can be a symptom of complications.

The tooth socket heals in approximately 2-4 weeks. Recovery time depends on the parameters of the wound and the body’s reaction to the removal procedure. Bone volume is restored approximately 6 months after the intervention.

Basic recommendations after gum incision

Implantation, tooth extraction, or opening of purulent foci is not possible without an incision in the gums. This stressful situation for the oral cavity causes considerable discomfort for a person.

Recommendations after gum incision:

On the first day, you need maximum peace and rest;
For 3 hours, all drinks and food should be excluded;
In the first 3 days, hard and hot foods should be excluded, as well as excessive facial expressions;
Any physical activity, especially those leading to blood flow to the head, should be avoided;
Also, exclude hot relaxing baths, saunas and steam baths;
For 7 days you need to strictly limit your intake of tobacco and alcoholic beverages;
It is strictly forbidden to apply hot compresses to the wound or cauterize it with alcohol-containing solutions.

What to do if complications arise after gum surgery:

Edema. Always occurs during implantation or after removal of a wisdom tooth. Small to medium edema is a normal reaction of the body. If the swelling is severe, then you need to consult your doctor to rule out the onset of alveolitis.
Temperature. The temperature that rises a few hours after the gum incision can reach 37.5 °C, which is considered normal. However, if it goes beyond 38 °C, it may indicate the onset of the inflammatory process. In this case, you should consult a doctor to prescribe a course of antibiotics.
Bleeding. After surgery, a blood clot usually forms to prevent bacteria from entering the socket. Bleeding occurs as a result of vascular damage or capillary fragility. To stop the bleeding, apply a thick sterile bandage to the problem area. If the bleeding does not stop, you should call a doctor.
Pain. Natural response to surgery. The pain can be moderate or very severe. In any case, to reduce it you need to take a painkiller pill.

Dental clinic Stomatolog 11 in Moscow offers a wide range of services in orthodontics, therapeutic dentistry, and implantation. It is also popular to make an appointment with a pediatrician and for teeth whitening.

Treatment using innovative dental devices and careful attitude towards each client allows us to minimize the risks of any complications after dental interventions. You can see the work performed by a team of true professionals in the photos posted on our website and in social groups.

Choose high-quality and safe dental services in our clinic. Ensure your dental health.

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What happens if you ignore pathological pain

The appearance of pain always signals a problem in the body. If the tooth was removed long ago, and the pain persists or increases, this is evidence of a complication. Pain may be associated with:

Increased body temperature;
severe swelling, redness of the mucous membrane;
halitosis;
purulent discharge from the socket;
white or gray coating on the mucous membrane;
enlargement of the submandibular lymph nodes;
pain while swallowing;
restriction when opening the mouth.

In this situation, you should see a doctor immediately.

Ignoring alarming symptoms is fraught with serious problems, such as abscess and osteomyelitis. These are serious pathologies that require timely, qualified treatment.

How gums heal

After surgery, connections between tissues and cells are disrupted. The healing process is the formation of new physiological and anatomical connections between them.

Healing includes:

Formation of a blood clot - forms within 5-10 minutes after surgery and serves as a protective barrier against infection and harmful microbes.
Formation of granulation tissue - within 3-4 hours the production of granulation tissue (young connective tissue) begins.
Epithelization and collagen formation lasts up to 7–10 days and is sometimes accompanied by slight itching.
Regeneration and maturation - the wound “heals” after 2–3 weeks, but complete healing of the fibers requires several months.

Gum healing

How to get rid of pain at home

To eliminate postoperative pain, the dentist will prescribe analgesics and cold compresses on the side of the intervention. Additionally, you can use traditional methods - mouth baths made from tinctures or herbal decoctions. Baths with an antiseptic drug are also allowed (the solution must be held in the mouth for a while and spat out). What is strictly forbidden:

warm the operated area;
rinse your mouth intensively (you can wash out the blood clot);
chew on the injured side;
“check” the hole using your tongue, fingers, and apply medicine to it.

The risk of complications depends on the complexity of the operation to remove a dental unit. Simple extraction is carried out if the tooth does not have strong, intertwined roots, it is intact, and there are no associated problems (cysts, pulpitis, periodontitis, etc.).

Extraction of dystopic teeth, which are very crooked, have intertwined, crooked roots, with a destroyed coronal part, and with an inflammatory process, is considered difficult. In such cases, a more extensive operation may be necessary with a preliminary incision in the gum, sawing the tooth into elements, extracting fragments through a hole in the jaw bone, and applying sutures. Molars are usually difficult to remove. If your gums hurt for several days after the removal of a molar, but the painful symptoms are smoothed out, then the wound is healing normally.

What does white plaque mean after tooth extraction?

Some patients notice that their gums turn white after tooth extraction. In the normal course of events, a whitish coating is nothing more than an “effusion” of fibrin from the blood, and indicates the beginning of epithelization of the wound. White plaque after tooth extraction usually appears on the surface of a blood clot (Fig. 8), as well as on the surface of a severely injured mucous membrane.

White plaque on the gum after tooth extraction -

In this case, the gum surrounding the socket has a pale pink color, when pressing on the gum there should be no purulent discharge (as in the video below), there should be no unpleasant odor from the socket, constant aching pain or pain when responding to cold and hot water (24stoma.ru) .

What to do after the procedure

General recommendations:

when you arrive home, you just need to lie down and relax;
you cannot eat or drink for 3 hours;
for 3 days after surgery, you should not open your mouth too wide, or eat hard or hot foods;
limit emotional and physical stress;
hot baths, visiting the sauna, and exercising in the gym are prohibited;
It is advisable to completely stop smoking and drinking alcohol for a week.

Remember: under no circumstances should you apply hot compresses or burn the wound with alcohol, iodine or brilliant green. It will only get worse!

A dental surgeon can prescribe applications of wound healing and antimicrobial ointments (Cholisal, Solcoseryl, Stomatofit, etc.). To strengthen general immunity, you can take immunomodulating agents and multivitamin complexes.

The main causes of pain in the gums

As soon as the anesthesia wears off, the patient begins to feel pain. Gum pain after tooth extraction for 10 days is normal. It is during this period that the wound heals completely.

Pathological pain longer than this period indicates the presence of a progressive infection. There are many reasons for inflammation. However, they all have a common beginning - removal of a formed blood clot. Food enters a fresh, unhealed wound, thereby accelerating the formation of harmful bacteria.

The main causes of cheek pain can be:

Inflammation of the trigeminal nerve. Unfortunately, the patient may also experience hearing loss. Such a complication cannot be allowed to occur; it is worth seeking professional help.
The remainder of the tooth in the wound will certainly provoke the accumulation of pus. This often happens when working with “complex” teeth that have crooked roots.
The clot can be easily washed out of the dry socket. In such cases, bacteria easily penetrate the open wound, causing inflammation.
Patients suffering from diabetes are susceptible to the formation of hematomas in soft tissues. Over time, the accumulated blood suppurates.
The pathological process can be triggered by a cyst, which usually grows on the root of the tooth, and may remain even after surgery.
Alveolitis is inflammation of the gums. This problem occurs when an infection gets into an open wound.
After tooth extraction, patients often experience bleeding. This is considered the norm. However, prolonged bleeding is a reason to consult a dentist.
Osteomyelitis is considered to be one of the most dangerous complications. The fact is that destruction occurs not only of the soft gum tissue, but also of the jaw bone. Weak immunity or neglected dental problems are the main causes of osteomyelitis. The worst thing is that the complication can infect the brain.