PROBLEMS AFTER TAKING OUT A TOOTH
Problems like swelling, severe pain, and bleeding can occur after you take out a tooth. Tetanus, a more serious problem, can also occur, especially if your instruments were not clean.
Swelling of the face
You can expect some swelling after you take out a tooth. But if the swelling continues to grow, and it is painful, this is not normal. Probably an infection has started. The treatment is the same as for a tooth abscess: penicillin for 3 days to fight infection, heat to reduce the swelling, and aspirin for pain. See here for the proper doses.
Pain from the Socket
There is always some pain after a tooth is taken out. Aspirin is usually enough to help.
However, sometimes a severe kind of pain starts inside the tooth's 'socket' (the wound) 2 to 3 days after you take out the tooth. This problem is called dry socket and it needs special care.
TREATMENT:
1. Place a dressing inside the socket. Change it each day until the pain stops.
First, clean out the socket.
Squirt warm water inside the socket with a clean syringe. After the person spits out the water, squirt water inside once more. Use a blunt needle so that it does not hurt the gums or bone if it touches them.
Second, prepare the dressing.
Soak 1-2 small pieces of cotton in eugenol (oil of cloves). Squeeze each piece so that it is damp but not wet.
Note: There may be a local medicine in your area that relieves pain. Use it instead of eugenol.
Third, place the dressing gently inside the socket.
Place one piece of dressing into each root space. Push it down into the root space gently.
Cover the socket with plain cotton gauze, and send the person home biting against it. He can remove the plain cotton in an hour. The dressing should remain inside the socket.
2. Give aspirin for pain.
Bleeding from the socket
When you take out a tooth it leaves a wound, so you can expect some blood. However, if the person bites firmly against a piece of cotton, it usually controls the bleeding. To help the wound heal (from a clot), tell the person not to rinse with salt water or spit for 1 or 2 days after you take out the tooth.
When the first bleeding occurs, put a new piece of cotton on top of the wound and ask the person to close her teeth against it for an hour. Keep her there with you, to be sure she continues to bite on the cotton. (If it is too painful, you may want to inject anesthetic. Change the cotton if it becomes soaked with blood.
TREATMENT (if the bleeding continues):
1. Take patients blood pressure. If it is high, you may need medicine to bring it down. That can help slow the bleeding.
2. Look carefully at the wound. If the gum is torn or loose, put in a suture.
3. Wrap tea leaves in cotton gauze. Soak the bundle in water and then put it on the socket. Have the person bite against it. Or, have her bite against cotton gauze soaked with cactus juice.
Let the person go home only when the bleeding stops. Supply some clean cotton to use in case the bleeding starts again later).
TETANUS
This is a very serious infection. Tetanus germs enter the body when a wound, like a wound on the bottom of the foot, gets dirty. Germs can also be carried to the socket when you use a dirty instrument to take out a tooth. To avoid this, carefully read the page on taking out a tooth.
SIGNS:
- the jaw becomes stiff and tight
- it is hard to swallow
- the whole body becomes tight, with sudden spasms
TREATMENT:
A person with signs of tetanus requires immediate medical help. See Where There Is No Doctor, page 182, if you cannot get help immediately.
