How to Recover from Bone Mass Surgery

Whether you just had some massive trauma to the mouth, suffered from a massive infection, or had a cyst or tumor removed from your mouth, you may have lost a lot of bone mass in the process. Once you have lost bone mass in your mouth and jaw, you will lose facial support. Luckily, with a bone grafting surgery, Dr. Leslie H. Sultan can restore your bones’ mass and get you back to functioning like normal. To make sure that you get the best results from your bone graft. However, it’s important that you follow the four tips listed below. Read on to learn more.

Do Not Use Straws

If you had your wisdom teeth out as a teenager, then you know just how important it is to avoid using straws. Although straws were designed to make lives easier, they can place a lot of pressure on your incision site and cause it to come open. Rather than using a straw, just drink like normal out of a glass.

Do Not Smoke

It’s no surprise that smoking is bad for all parts of your health— including your oral health. During your recovery from bone grafting, make sure that you don’t smoke. Smoking can not only make it hard for your body to heal after surgery but it can cause your bone grafting to ultimately fail.

Rinse With Warm Salt Water

To help combat infection and in combination with the antibiotic Dr. Leslie H. Sultan will give you, it’s important that you rinse with warm salt water around four to five times every day. When rinsing with saltwater, combine ½ of table salt with a glass of warm water, mixing thoroughly. Then, gently rinse it around your mouth without placing too much pressure on the surgical site. Try to rinse for about 30-60 seconds at a time.

Do Not Touch the Site

If you are a picker, this might be a hard step for you to do but it’s one of the most important. As your mouth heals from the bone grafting procedure, make sure that you don’t touch the site— even with your tongue. The more you feel the incision site, the more likely it is to be exposed to bacteria and germs or even rip open.

From avoiding straws to not touching the incision site, these tips will help with your bone graft recovery. To learn more or to schedule an appointment, contact Dr. Leslie H. Sultan today.