How To Take Care Of Your Dental Implants After Surgery

Following your dental implant fixture placement, you’ll be given detailed instructions about how to take care of the surgical site to keep it comfortable and to promote healing.

Instructions provided to you by your dentist will be specific for you, and should be followed even if they differ from the information posted on this page.

Please note that this post-surgical care information contains general guidelines only. If you are unsure of how to proceed, please call the practice for specific instructions.

Be Gentle With The Surgical Site: Post-Surgical Care

The surgical site will need time to heal, so you need to avoid doing anything that is likely to disturb or put pressure on this area.

• For the first few days, it’s wise to stick to a soft diet, avoiding hot, crunchy or sticky foods.
• Later in the week, you can eat more solid foods, but avoid chewing hard, crunchy or sticky foods on the side that has just had surgery
• If food does settle in the surgical area, remove it gently, without disturbing the surgical site. You might find gentle rinsing is the best approach.
• Your dentist may recommend a warm salt-water rinse in the first few days. Rinse gently, not vigorously. You may also be given a syringe to help you direct the saltwater gently onto the surgical site.
• If you have stitches in place, please avoid doing anything that is likely to pull or snag them.
• Your dentist will remove these in about one week.
• Maintain normal tooth-cleaning activities on teeth distant from the surgical site. Your dentist will probably suggest that you avoid brushing and flossing close to the surgical site until you have returned for your 1-week review appointment.
• Once the surgical site has closed over and the stitches have been removed, you can eat, drink and clean normally

Post-Operative Medication

• If your dentist has prescribed antibiotics, please take them according to directions and please complete the full course.
• Your dentist will recommend over-the-counter analgesics (pain killers) for pain management.
• Please take these only as recommended.
• If you are experiencing severe or significant pain, please contact your dentist.
• Never use another person’s prescribed analgesics

If Any Of The Following Happen, Contact Your Dentist Or Emergency Medical Facility Immediately

• Severe pain
• Swelling of any kind
• Persistent bleeding
• The appearance of pus or other signs of infection