INSTRUCTIONS FOLLOWING PERIODONTAL SURGERY

1. Immediately after surgery, use a cold pack on your face next to the operated area to keep down the swelling (washcloths frozen in a zip-lock bag wrapped in paper towels or frozen veggies also work). Keep the cold pack on for 20 minutes, then off for 20 minutes. Repeat the sequence for 48 hours (as much as you can). Depending on the size of surgical site, you might have swelling in the area for three to four days. The swelling should reduce after the fourthday.
2. Drink plenty of cool fluids, such as water, fruit juice (no lemon juice, no orange juice) or Gatorade for the first 2 days. Avoid hot foods and drinks for at least one full day. Warm food and drinks could be helpful in healing starting the secondday.
3. Avoid smoking and alcoholic beverages for at least 7 days before and 10 days after the surgery. Both interfere with blood clotting and healing.
4. Please limit your physical activities following surgery. Do not clean the house (tell your family Dr said so), mow the lawn, jog, exercise, etc. for at least 2 days after surgery. You should be able to go to work (light physical activity) the next day; remember that your body should be spending most of its energy healing.
5. Try to take it easy and get a lot of rest the day of surgery. Keep your head elevated by relaxing in a chair or using an extra pillow on your bed or couch.
6. You will probably have discomfort in the surgical area today and tonight, and possibly longer. To minimize the discomfort, take the stronger pain pills as directed. Take pain medications when you arrive home, at bedtime the first night, and then as needed according todirections.
7. You will probably have slight bleeding and pink color to your saliva the rest of the day. Holding small amounts of ice water or ice in your mouth will usually stop any minor bleeding (Don’t you even think about chewing it).
8. Take all the medications given or prescribed for you as directed. They have been given to you for very important reasons. The only type of medicine that you could take as needed is the pain medicine. Take all the medications with food unless otherwisestated.
9. You may eat most foods, but common sense suggests that you eat softer foods, take smaller bites, and chew only in the areas where there is no dressing or no sutures. Avoid hard foods that require heavy pressure for chewing. Avoid highly seasoned foods. Also avoid sharp foods such as nuts, popcorn, and potato chips. Food supplements such as Metrecal, Nutrament, Sego, Instant Breakfast etc. may be helpful; a strictly liquid diet is not required after the first day or two. Do not drink through a straw for the first 10days.
10. You could brush and floss your other teeth as usual (not the operated area). Rinsing with the prescription mouth wash, or warm salt water will help to clean the treated area. Mix as much salt with half glass of warm water, keep it in for 1 minute (Do not gurgle, swish or put pressure while rinsing), tilt your head and let it drip out (Do not spit or cause any type of suction in your mouth).
11. If you were given special instructions regarding a particular procedure, please refer to them for care of that area.

It is most important that you maintain a nutritious diet during the weeks of healing. Individuals who maintain a good diet of soft foods generally feel better, have less discomfort, and heal faster. The foods listed below are planned to provide the body with adequate vitamins and minerals. Foods containing tomatoes, onions, peppers, or spices of any kind will be irritating and should be avoided.

BREAKFAST SUGESTIONS (Blender may be used to liquefy foods)

Apple juice, milk, hot chocolate, ovaltine, tea, coffee (all warm not hot), stewed fruits, prunes or similar fruits (should be well mashed), cooked cereals such as oatmeal or cream of wheat, eggs (soft boiled soft scrambled, poached or soft fried), bread (should be softened with gravy or vegetable juice), milk toast, doughnuts (softened in milk or coffee), liquid supplements as above.

LUNCH AND DINNER SUGESTIONS

Home cooked broth, bouillon, soups, ground beef, baked or broiled fish, (or fried fish with crust removed), broiled or stewed chicken (finely chopped), macaroni and cheese, eggs as above, bread as above, milkshake, ice cream, baked or whipped potatoes, asparagus, peas, cooked carrots, lima beans, string beans (all mashed), cottage cheese, cream cheese, cheese soufflé`, canned Bartlett pears, baked apples, pudding, Jell-O, custards, stewed fruits and poundcake.

REMEMBER: You may eat any soft foods that do not irritate. You may chew if it is not too uncomfortable to do so. If you are experiencing difficulty in eating normal foods, the use of one of the commercially available dietary supplements (such as Instant breakfast, Ensure, Enrich, Sego etc.) may be used, and the daily intake of a multi- vitamin is recommended (you could increase your Vitamin C intake to 500mg in morning and evening since this has shown to increase wound healing and tissue repair).

Diet Suggestions

• DailyVitamins!!!!
• Anything put through a foodblender
• Cream of wheat, oatmeal, malt omeal
• Mashed banana, mashed avocado, and applesauce.
• Mashed potatoes or baked potatoes ok with butter and sourcream
• Broth or creamed soups mashed yams, baked sweet potato or buttersquash
• Cottage cheese, cream cheese, or softcheeses
• Eggs any style, with or without meltedcheese
• Omelets can have cheese andavocado
• Jell-O, pudding, ice cream, andyogurt
• Milk shakes, smoothies – OK to blend with fruit except NO BERRIES withSEEDS
• Ensure, slim fast, nutritionaldrinks.

Do not eat

• Chewinggum * Anything withseed
• Candy * Anything with hardpieces
• Cookies * Raw vegetable /salad
• Chips * Meat that shreds and can lodge under gums or betweenteeth
• Nuts
• Anything hard
• Anythingcrunchy