how long does dry socket take to heal?

[PrammyMammy]

I had a tooth extracted on Thursday, have been in complete pain over the weekend and had to go back today. They said i have dry socket and cleaned it out then packed it with a brown cotton thing that stinks.
How long before it heals? Should that be it sorted?

[patty22681]

You are doing the right thing with the clove oil. I am experiencing a dry socket myself and will see the dentist tomorrow for professional treatment. But after many hours of research I'm seeing that you should continue using the oil for pain relief and control. Your body will heal itself in time. The best thing you can do is rinse your mouth with warm salt water in between the clove oil to keep it clean, followed by the oil. You are not hindering the healing process. Don't worry.

[emmlee]

i am suffering with dry socket at the moment, ive got it packed by the dentist but it feels like it is stretching out my gum, is this a normal feeling? and should the packing stay in the socket? am worried this will hinder healing time as the gum cant close over?? thanks in advance x

[toomsri1970s]

wow! I had exactly what you explained, really exactly, had tooth taken out Thursday with worse digging ever and ended up with a chip tooth still left in the socket. Friday I was in agony all day thinking it was the pain from all those digging, whole weekend I was in bad pain. Went to the dentist Monday and she said it got infected and she cleaned the socket out and stuffed the brown woolly thing in the socket and said it should dissolve itself, and gave antibiotic to take for 5 days. After 3 days of taken antiobiotic, I was still in pain and this is no way pain from infection, so phoned the dental practise but couldn't speak to the dentist instead the manager rung back and gave me an appointment for next day morning which was yesterday, I went the dentist cleaned out the socket and again put in the woolly brown stuff and said I had whats called 'dry socket' and it should get better gradually. As the matter of fact after that brown woolly stuff is in, the pain is certainly going and hopefully should be gone by tomorrow, fingers crossed.

[Mrscupcake23]

I had a tooth removed today and the clot has just come out. Is it ok to start with salt water now? I had dry socket last time I had a tooth removed really don't want it again:(.

Would antibiotics help to heal it ?

[toomsri1970s]

well my dentist told me to use salt water next day and no hot drink first day, so I suggest you wait till tomorrow. hope you feel better soon.

[toomsri1970s]

well my dentist told me to use salt water next day, didn't your dentist tell you that?

[Mrscupcake23]

Yes he did but I have had two out already and both got an infection it . I just wanted to be extra careful . Again it's really hurting today , I hate teeth.

[LightastheBreeze]

I had a old broken wisdom tooth out today and dentist said to start the salt rinses tomorrow. I am terrified of dislodging the clot as that is when the pain starts. i had dry socket on a previous extraction and it was hell.

All my other extractions apart from the one (I've had a few) have been OK though cos I have been very careful after reading about dry socket.

[Mrscupcake23]

Yes I dislodged the clot last night I am in pain today I wish I hadn't .

[LightastheBreeze]

I think if the clot has come out you have to have it packed or it doesn't heal and gets very painful because the hole is all exposed. I can remember the pain from when it happened to me

[Mrscupcake23]

Yes the pain has got worse

[Slightlyneuroricnat]

Is it all sorted now?
My journey is only just starting with a bloody dry socket

[Joladybugg]

Oh my days ... Sounds like a bit of a horror story for everyone ... Well I'm on day 6 after surgery should be feeling better but nope getting worse goes to dentist dry socket .... Really hard work looking after 2 year old on melt own in pain without having to make such trips to hospital .... They have packed my tooth but haven't give me a follow up no going back in couple of days or are all in fact no prescription ..... Is this normal ???

[Dawndonnaagain]

Dh had this at Christmas. Clove Oil really helped. I hope you all feel better, he did seem to go to hell and back!

[tommy567]

I had a serious car accident nov 24th 2013, i broke 2 neck vertebrae, broke 7 ribs, had a punctured lung as well as a pneumothorax, OPEN fracture of the tibia, fractured ankle, fractured fibula and ruptured spleen. six operations, lots of plastic surgery involving free flap surgery (which failed and there were even leeches used for a week to try salvage it - see this out for interest: ), followed by a distal pedicle sural flap (to fill the whole in the leg). AND THEN, after ALL this, 3 months later (still healing and still can't walk but doing much better), i started experiencing tooth ache. i had a couple root canals (non eventful) and then the pain went and then was need of an extraction (allegedly). The extraction took near on an hour and the tooth was drilled in half to get it out. Pain started 4 days post extraction, EXTREME pain, thought it was normal and rinsed mouth with salt water for that whole day and next morning. The salt water is a mistake with dry socket. Pain was EXTREME++ for half an hour post swirling round mouth. Long short, dry socket, even the dentist didn't ever mention this diagnosis. However, the dentist wanted to use some of his new equipment so instead of doing the usual for dry socket, took some of my blood and using a centrifuge, isolated the plasma, then filled the hole with this and stitched it up. Anaesthetic wore off that evening, again, PAINFUL as hell. so day 7, Face throbbing, jaw aching all over left side as if I'd been chewing for 10 hours non-stop, dull and sharp pains round gum area and adjacent teeth and pain creeping up to left ear and migraines. 1g paracetemol + 600mg ibuprofen did sweet sod all. Luckily my gf was carrying some co-codamol 500/30 (so paracetemol and codeine respectively). This really does help, thank God, but only had two pills so necked them and then had to fight through rest of night.. The dentist didn't diagnose with dry socket but filled the hole with my own blood plasma (used in dentistry for post surgery blah blah, PRP its called). This did f all. Next day called dentist, he referred me to maxillofacial surgeon (the one amazing thing he actually did do). This lady sorted it straight away. she cleaned it out (said there was no plasma left, i.e. it had just seeped out through the stitches, said she doesnt believe in that sht anyway) and cleaned the bone (man that was PAIN) and also got it to bleed again. She then packed with ALVOGYL (thank you my new best friend). PAIN, even after packed, I thought, F*, will this really work but was pleased cos she told me no fracture of jaw and really seemed to know what was up: i.e. dry socket. Ten mins later, pain GONE!!! F** I was ecstatic!!!!! SERIOUSLY. It's now been a week, there's been zero pain the WHOLE time. BUT, just this evening, some mild aching has started in the area. This just petrifies me. Scared it will come back. Just want to know, is it normal for the pain to creep back and then to go get some more alvogyl and continue in this cycle until completely healed, or what?

[dansus72]

Dry socket is nightmare, taking action quickly can mitigate the worst of the pain. If you have it, there is no clot, so you can rinse with hot salt water. Im told to stay off the mouth rinses like Corsodyl for a few days but ok after that.

First off, get down the dentists and get some of that brown gauze in there. Once that has taken, you can rinse and i was given a syringe with a plastic needle to clean out the area after eating, this worked well for me to reduce soreness after eating.

Im told it can take up to a year to fully heal, but should ok after 6-8 weeks.

[Shellw21]

Hey my dentist never told me when to take the gaze out all he said was to keep it in as long as possible, when should I take it out because I don't want it to get stick in there

[Linda31]

i had a dry socket and the pain was unbelievable, my heart goes out for everyone going through it. ibuprofein and paracetamol didnt help, but codeine did, so ask your doctor to prescribe that, it helped immediately, i felt the most immense relief and gratitude after that. also, go to the dentist, so they can cause a bleeding to the dry socket so that a new blood clot will form. i did that plus the codeine and the healing started. i also took homeopathy and natural remedies to aid and help with the healing:ruta graveolans for the healing of the dry socket (100 c every hour/few hours) and hypericum 100c (every hour) for the nervous pain. healing started the next day after i started taking these....noni juice and 3000 mg of vitamin c (lots of noni juice i took) and natures antibiotics to prevent an infection (olive leaf extract, grapeseed oil and oregano oil) . i also put extra virgin coconut oil on the dry socket at least once an hour to help fight off and prevent infection and help the healing. probiotics help fighting off infection as well, i took plenty of them as well. all these together and a week and and a half of terrible pain started healing in one/two days.

[cyrenasmommy51514]

Oh my goodness !!!! I'm feeling for you all !!! I have a 3 and a half month old and I had her 9.5 lb self no problem !! This is hell, hydros aren't even working anymore, this is a world of hell !!! I broke 2 molers when I was pregnant and couldn't save them, and on top of that I had my wisdoms coming in but had no room for them. Went through antibiotics 3 times while I was pregnant because of infections !!!! Finally had her in May and scheduled my dental surgery and had all 6 taken out at once on the 20th. I was doing good until my clot fell out on my bottom left where both wisdom and far back left moler was removed.... I've been trying to tough it out and not go but I think I'm going to have to go because my 7.5 hydros are no longer working, they just make me really high and sometimes tired !!! Which is a no no with a teething 3 and a half month old and going to college full time !!!! My mouth is still bruised to boot !! And I can't open my mouth very far, does anybody know how long that'll last !!! It's difficult not being able to make my baby giggle because she's in the giggling stage now !!! I'm getting pain all down the bottom left side of my mouth, getting a very painful ear ache and now the migraines are starting which I already get them to the point where I end up puking and don't want to get my baby sick. Also randomly get blood tinged spit and can constantly taste it and it doesn't taste too great, is it from the dry socket ??? Thank you in advanced everyone !!!

[SayItHowIt1s]

Good news There's something you can buy OTC ( over the counter) andd its a gods send from heaven its called (RedCross Toothache Pain Kit) get them at the pharmacy but I Promise you 30 seconds pain starts to subside and 5 min NO PAIN

[Springheeled]

Sorry to resurrect thread but I have dry socket and have just had it packed: did people take time off work?

[twinsmommy2005]

Hi
I am new here, and found this site while I searched 'dry socket'
As I type I am in much pain, but on the bearable part. Its been 10 days since I had my wisdom tooth pulled out & 4 days back this horrid pain reared its ugly head..:(
(I am trying to be witty haha)
So, when does this pain go?
My dentist did a medicated dressing, but I needed to take the painkiller every 3-4 hours.
This pain is WAY WORSE than the actual wisdom tooth pain. It starts as soon as the effect of the medication starts to die :(

Thankyou

[chriskeys]

I don't fall into any of the relevant categories for a dry socket. I am over seventy, have never smoked and it has never happened with any of the three other teeth I have had removed during my lifetime, two of those were wisdom teeth which apparently are particularly prone). I have since spoken to others who have suffered the same and there doesn't seem to be any relevant pattern with them either, as none fall into the categories mentioned. I had this tooth out on the 12th December and have been back to the dentist twice to have it plugged but the plug works its way out after 24 hours or so. I can't go back now until next week - if I can get an appointment!! as they are closed so am just living on painkillers until then.

[bellalouise86]

I had a tooth took out a week ago got told I had dry socket two days later hole was filled with the gauze fell out after two days got it really packed yesterday and It's fallen out again tonight worst pain ever!! :-(