If you are going to be getting dental implants, from a clinic like Oral Surgery Associates Inc, you may be more worried about the actual recovery than you are about the procedure itself. It's nerve wracking to not know exactly what to expect once you leave the dentist's office and go home. If you are concerned about the recovery from dental implants, this article will explain what to expect, and how you can help speed up your recovery time.

What to expect after the procedure

When you get out of the procedure, you may experience a mild amount of bleeding. This bleeding may last as long as a few days after the procedure. You can use a piece of gauze to control the bleeding by placing it over the area and biting on it.

You can also expect some swelling. This swelling can occur in more places than your cheek area. It can also affect most of your face.  You should start to see the swelling about a day after and it can last for a few days. The best thing to do for swelling is to use an ice pack on the affected areas.

As far as pain goes, you should be quite comfortable right after the procedure. After you get home and the anesthesia begins to wear off you will begin to experience some pain. As soon as you feel the pain coming on you should begin taking the pain medication prescribed to you. The pain should decrease a bit with each day that passes. If you start to experience increased pain, it may be a sign something isn't right and you should get in to see the dentist.

Caring for your new dental implants

One of the most important things to understand is that you want to avoid irritating the area as much as possible. This means, you shouldn't touch it at all on the day you have had the procedure done. You also want to avoid spitting and drinking out of a straw, since they can cause more bleeding.  

You want to be sure you use a soft bristled toothbrush to brush your teeth and go gently around the dental implants.

Once you start taking the pain medication prescribed to you, make sure you take it as instructed. You don't want to wait for the pain to come since the medication will take a while to kick in. If you were given antibiotics, make sure you take them all until they are gone.

Stick to liquids directly following the procedure. Once you start eating solids, you want them to be very soft and chew with the teeth away from the dental implants. It's important for you to drink plenty of water.

If you are concerned about anything you want to call your dentist. They can let you know whether or not there is a reason for concern and give you tips on dealing with any issues you are experiencing.