What post-operative instructions should patients follow after wisdom tooth extraction?

Materials and methods

Table 1 — Printed post-extraction instructions provided after the extraction. Post-extraction instructions Prepare a hot saline mouthwash by adding one teaspoonful of salt to a tumbler of hot but not scalding water. Bathe the mouth gently with this at least four times daily for four days, starting at bedtime on the day of the extraction – not before It is important that a blood clot develops in the socket. Do not touch or poke the socket with the tongue or finger. If the dentist gives you a cotton or gauze pad to bite on when leaving the clinic, throw it away (into a proper waste receptacle) after 20 minutes. Its sole purpose is to keep your mouth comfortable for a few minutes while a blood clot forms A little blood-stained saliva is a normal consequence of tooth extraction and of no importance. However, if bleeding persists for more than one or two hours, hold a small pad of clean cloth over the socket with gentle pressure for 10 minutes from a finger or from the opposing teeth. If bleeding is very severe or persists for more than eight hours, contact the dentist again Eat soft foods such as minced meat, ice cream, and milk pudding for 48 hours after the operation. Keep food on the side of the mouth opposite to the extraction area If you are given antibiotic tablets or capsules and analgesics complete the full course, as prescribed by the dentist. Do not stop when you feel better Be careful to avoid biting or scalding the area made numb by local (injection) anesthesia

Effectiveness of Phone Call Follow-Ups in Improving Patient Compliance to Post-extraction Instructions: A Cross-Sectional Study. Copyright © 2022, Ramalingam et al. Creative Commons Attribution 3.0 International (https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/3.0/).

Discussion

It has further been observed that a phone call follow-up reduces the frequency of patients returning to the hospital due to postoperative sequelae [5]. In the present study, certain post-extraction instructions witnessed lower levels of compliance from the patients compared to the other instructions. For instance, “rinsing the mouth with warm saline once in six hours,” “following proper oral hygiene,” and “avoiding vigorous rinsing/spitting for one day” were poorly complied with by patients in all three groups, and the difference was statistically significant. However, there was a noticeable improvement in adhering to the above instructions with increasing frequency of phone call follow-up, thereby indicating the reinforcing role of postoperative phone calls. The most likely reason behind patient negligence toward “regular mouth rinsing with saline after extraction” was primarily attributed to the alleviation of pain symptoms, which let patients return to their regular lives without worrying about it. Similarly, the possible reason for “avoiding rinsing/spitting” and “proper oral hygiene” stemmed from ignorance about how to clean the oral cavity adjoining the extracted site. The evidence that phone call follow-up improved adherence to the above instructions is proof enough of their educative role along with verbal and written post-extraction instructions. The fact that a clinician could educate his/her patient about postoperative instructions and recommendations is imperative for building clinician-patient trust and relationship [4].

Effectiveness of Phone Call Follow-Ups in Improving Patient Compliance to Post-extraction Instructions: A Cross-Sectional Study. Copyright © 2022, Ramalingam et al. Creative Commons Attribution 3.0 International (https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/3.0/).