After Dental Implant Surgery

After any surgery, it is important that the wound remains undisturbed. This is especially important (and difficult) in the mouth because the tongue never stops moving. Avoid rinsing, spitting, or touching the wound for the first few days. In many instances, Dr. Konys will place a small metal healing cap at the time of implant placement. This allows the gum tissue to be shaped during the healing process. If a healing cap is placed, you will be given specific and easy instructions for keeping it clean.

Bleeding

Some bleeding or redness in the saliva is normal for 24 hours. Usually this is caused by a little bit of bleeding mixing with a lot of saliva, making it look worse than it is. If you develop frank, red blood that rapidly fills the mouth, bite on gauze to compress the area of bleeding and have someone else call our office for further instructions.

Swelling

A small amount of swelling is possible after implant surgery. This is especially true after multiple implants have been placed. To minimize swelling, apply an ice bag, or a plastic bag, or towel filled with ice on the cheek in the area of surgery. Some people find that a bag of frozen peas works great too. Apply the ice continuously, as much as possible, for the first 24-48 hours. After 48 hours, moist heat works best to eliminate any residual swelling. If you experience an episode of rapid, visually apparent swelling, it may be a sign of an unexpected bleed into the tissue. Please call Dr. Konys for further instructions if this is the case.

Diet

Maintaining a proper diet is very important for proper healing. So you should drink plenty of fluids and maintain a soft diet for the first couple of days. You should avoid hot liquids or foods as they may burn the tissues, but you may return to a normal diet as soon as possible, unless otherwise directed.

Pain

Everyone experiences some sort of discomfort after surgery. In general, it is easily managed with medication that will be prescribed by Dr. Konys.

Antibiotics

It is generally advisable to take antibiotics for a few days after an implant is placed. This helps to minimize the chance for infection. Be sure to take the prescribed antibiotics as directed.

Oral Hygiene

Good oral hygiene is essential to good implant healing. To aid in this process, you will be given Peridex oral rinse to use after your surgery. Peridex should be used twice daily, after breakfast and before bed. Be sure to rinse for at least 30 seconds then spit it out. Warm water rinses should be used at least 4-5 times a day, as well, especially after meals. Brushing your teeth and the healing abutments is no problem. Be gentle initially with brushing the surgical areas.

Activity

Keep physical activities to a minimum immediately following surgery. Heavy physical exercise or work immediately after surgery increases the blood pressure, resulting in swelling, throbbing and/or bleeding. We recommend laying low for a few days before resuming your usual routine. Listen to your body. It will tell you when to increase your activity. Keep in mind that you are probably not taking normal nourishment right after surgery, so take it slow.

Wearing your Prosthesis after surgery

Partial dentures, flippers, or full dentures should be used as little as possible after implant surgery. This is for a number of reasons, but most importantly, because they put undesirable pressure on the implant and surrounding tissue. This can lead to delayed healing and may cause an implant to become loose. Dr. Konys will adjust your prosthesis to minimize pressure. But you should plan on leaving the prosthesis out as much as possible during the first few weeks after implant placement.