On the day of surgery:

• Avoid: hot drinks, hot or hard food, alcohol, vigorous physical effort, playing with the wound, and rinsing your mouth.

• Drink plenty of cold or warm fluid, and eat soft food.

• Avoid Smoking and Alcohol: Refrain from smoking or vaping for at least 5 to 7 days post-surgery. Smoking severely restricts blood flow to the gums and significantly increases the risk of implant failure. Avoid alcohol while taking pain medications

• Use the prescribed tablets for pain relief. Over-the-counter ibuprofen or paracetamol is often sufficient. It is recommended that you start this before the local anaesthesia wears off.

• Slight oozing of blood is normal. If significant bleeding occurs, place a gauze or cotton pad over the bleeding site and apply pressure by biting down firmly for 15-30 minutes. This may need to be repeated.

• If bleeding is excessive and uncontrolled by pressure, contact your dentist.

• To minimise swelling, an ice pack (small bag of frozen peas wrapped in a cloth) may be held on the side of the face. Apply 10-15 minutes every hour on the day of surgery.

On the day after surgery:

• It is essential to keep all wounds clean

• Brush your teeth, including those around the wound. Food remnants and plaque delay healing.

• For the next 5 - 7 days rinse your mouth gently after meals and before bed with very warm, salty water (one teaspoon of salt in a glass of water).

• Chlorhexidine mouthwash will help reduce the risk of infection.

Follow-up

• We will see you in 7-10 days to check healing and remove any remaing sutures.

Important

When to contact us:

• Bleeding that remains heavy and bright red even after biting on gauze or a tea bag.

• Severe pain that is not relieved by your prescribed medications.

• Swelling or fever that worsens after the third day.

Please contact us if you have any questions