What are Dry Sockets?

The term Dry Socket is one of the most feared, 

and most misunderstood, in the field of dentistry.

Whenever teeth, of any kind and not just wisdom teeth, 

are removed there is the chance for dry socket.

But what is dry socket?

Dry socket is very simple to understand.

After a tooth is pulled out of the jaw

 the surrounding tissues will begin to bleed.

This is a very good thing.

The blood will fill the socket, where the tooth used to be, 

and a blood clot will begin to form.

A blood clot in a socket is kind of like a scab over a cut.

It serves to protect the injured areas until healing can complete.

A dry socket will occur when, for whatever reason, 

the blood clot comes out of the socket prematurely.

If the blood clot comes out then the bone of the socket

will dry out. Thus, Dry Socket.

That's it. 

Just like a scab being removed prematurely will reveal tissues

that are not ready to be exposed to the outside environment, 

so to a blood clot being removed prematurely from a socket

will reveal tissues that are also not ready to exposure to outside forces.

When the clot comes out the tissues that are exposed

are boney tissues.

Dry boney tissues, dry socket, are very painful

and certain steps should be taken by both Dr

and patient to avoid them.

Dr. Ellis Website

Dr. Ellis on Facebook

Dr. Ellis on Google+

My eye!!!

Everyone knows that having dry eyes are bad.

If its caused by hot dry weather, medication, allergies,

age, etc. its no fun when your eyes are dry.

And it seems as though people seem to have a pretty good handle 

on stopping their eyes from being dry.

People will take their allergy meds, or reach for over the counter

solutions to place directly into their eyes to moisten them.

But what about dry mouth?

It seems as though people do not realize what to do about

dry mouth or even know what causes it.

Dry mouth is bad. 

And it can be very bad.

Dry teeth are essentially dead teeth waiting to happen.

Saliva plays a huge roll in protecting your teeth from the 

effects of the bacteria that cause cavities.

Without the saliva (dry mouth) the teeth are sitting ducks for the 

effects of the bacteria.

The causes of Dry mouth are varied.

Age, medications, and genetics are all part of the equation.

And just like treating dry eyes there are things that can, 

and should be, done in relation to treating dry mouth.

First is to identify the cause.

If its medications then talk to the doctor that is putting you on those

meds and discuss other possible options and medications.

If it is age or genetics then there are steps you can take. 

First is to always carry a water bottle with you.

It is not the quantity of water you drink but the frequency 

with which you drink it.

Always keeping your mouth moist is key.

There are also several over the counter medications 

to assist people with dry mouth.

Toothpastes, mouthwashes, mouth sprays, etc, are all available.

Take home point here is that if you suffer from dry mouth

do not let things go too long before you address the situation.

Dry mouth, just like dry eyes, if left untreated can have very long lasting

and severe effects. 

Dr. Ellis Website

Dr. Ellis on Facebook

Dr. Ellis on Google+

Dry Eyes, and Dry Teeth.

Everyone knows that having dry eyes are bad.

If its caused by hot dry weather, medication, allergies,

age, etc. its no fun when your eyes are dry.

And it seems as though people seem to have a pretty good handle 

on stopping their eyes from being dry.

People will take their allergy meds, or reach for over the counter

solutions to place directly into their eyes to moisten them.

But what about dry mouth?

It seems as though people do not realize what to do about

dry mouth or even know what causes it.

Dry mouth is bad. 

And it can be very bad.

Dry teeth are essentially dead teeth waiting to happen.

Saliva plays a huge roll in protecting your teeth from the 

effects of the bacteria that cause cavities.

Without the saliva (dry mouth) the teeth are sitting ducks for the 

effects of the bacteria.

The causes of Dry mouth are varied.

Age, medications, and genetics are all part of the equation.

And just like treating dry eyes there are things that can, 

and should be, done in relation to treating dry mouth.

First is to identify the cause.

If its medications then talk to the doctor that is putting you on those

meds and discuss other possible options and medications.

If it is age or genetics then there are steps you can take. 

First is to always carry a water bottle with you.

It is not the quantity of water you drink but the frequency 

with which you drink it.

Always keeping your mouth moist is key.

There are also several over the counter medications 

to assist people with dry mouth.

Toothpastes, mouthwashes, mouth sprays, etc, are all available.

Take home point here is that if you suffer from dry mouth

do not let things go too long before you address the situation.

Dry mouth, just like dry eyes, if left untreated can have very long lasting

and severe effects. 

Dr. Ellis Website

Dr. Ellis on Facebook

Dr. Ellis on Google+

Dry Socket Part II

Yesterday we covered what a dry socket is.

(If you need to review just go back a post)

Today we will talk about how to prevent them and how to treat them.

First off is how to prevent them.

Do not chew food around the extraction. 

Pushing large pieces of food into the socket is not good.

Do not smoke for the first 48 hours post surgery.

Bathing a wound in cancer causing smoke may cause the

slowing of wound healing and increase possible dry socket.

Minimize pressure changes into, or out of, your mouth.

Blood clots can get dislodged relatively easily.

Sucking on a straw, sneezing, coughing hard, etc. can alter the pressures

in your mouth and dislodge the clot.

Second how to treat a dry socket.

Well, since the problem with a dry socket is that the blood clot is gone

the first thing we do is try to re-introduce one.

You come back into the dentist office, get numbed up all over again, 

we clean any debris out of the site, then we scrape around and make

you bleed all over again.

This fresh blood will form a new clot that hopefully will stay.

If that doesn't work there are medications that can be placed in the socket.

Basically it is just a function of time. The body just needs much  longer

to heal from the extraction if you have a dry socket then if you did not have one.

Hopefully after any extraction your dentist gives you a list of do's and don'ts.

Make sure you follow them. 

Do what the dentist says is the best way of staying away form the dry socket.

Dr. Ellis Website

Dr. Ellis on Facebook

Dr. Ellis on Google+

What is a "dry socket"?

The term Dry Socket is one of the most feared, 

and most misunderstood, in the field of dentistry.

Whenever we take out wisdom teeth people will 

often ask if they are going to get dry socket.

Dry socket is very simple to understand.

After a tooth is pulled out of the jaw

 the surrounding tissues will begin to bleed.

This is a very good thing.

The blood will fill the socket, where the tooth used to be, 

and a blood clot will begin to form.

A blood clot in a socket is kind of like a scab over a cut.

It serves to protect the injured areas until healing can complete.

A dry socket will occur when, for whatever reason, 

the blood clot comes out.

If the blood clot comes out then the bone of the socket

will dry out. Thus, Dry Socket.

Dry bone is very painful bone.

It is most assuredly something to be avoided.

Tomorrow we will discuss how to avoid dry socket and how it is treated.

Dr. Ellis Website

Dr. Ellis on Facebook

Dr. Ellis on Google+