How long do you take antibiotics after wisdom teeth removal

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Open access

Abstract

Objective

The aim of this study was to evaluate the efficacy of 48-h antibiotic prophylaxis in the prevention of surgical site infections during simple dental extractions by conducting a clinical trial controlled by 7-day antibiotic therapy. Our hypothesis was that there was no difference between these two protocols in the prevention of surgical site infection.

Method

ology: This was a 6-month randomised multicentre clinical trial conducted in three health facilities in the city of Yaoundé. The study included any patient aged 18 years or older who was scheduled for a simple dental extraction. The calculated sample size was 142 patients randomly divided into 2 groups. Group I consisted of patients who took 1 g of amoxicillin 1 h before surgery and then 1 g every 12 h for 48 h. Group 2 took amoxicillin only postoperatively at a rate of 1 g every 12 h for 7 days. The control was done at day and day 7. The primary endpoint was the occurrence of surgical site infection and the secondary endpoints were the occurrence of dry socket, oedema and pain.

Results

No statistically significant difference was found at the 5% level between the two protocols regarding the occurrence of pain, postoperative oedema and surgical site infection with respective p-values of 0.834; 0.414; 0.175. In addition, a statistically significant difference was found for dry socket disease (p-value = 0.0149) showing a reduced risk in the 48-h group.

Conclusion

It was found that there was no difference between these two protocols except for dry socket disease where the 48 h antibiotic prophylaxis protocol seems to be more effective. Furthermore, the question of the necessity of antibiotic prophylaxis for simple extractions remains, as only a randomised placebo-controlled clinical trial could provide answers.

Keywords

Antibiotic prophylaxis

Dental extraction

Antibiotic therapy

Complications

© 2021 The Author(s). Published by Elsevier Ltd on behalf of British Association of Oral and Maxillofacial Surgeons.

Luke,

Thank you for your question.

Dr. Finley would need to examine your tooth socket to determine if it is still infected. But your description sounds that you need to continue antibiotics after your current prescription runs out. Contact your oral surgeon and explain that you have not healed completely and need more antibiotics. If your symptoms do not improve in a few days after the new prescription, keep taking the medication to avoid a relapse.

A tooth infection can last several weeks after wisdom tooth removal. And an infection can begin as late as three to four weeks after removal. At times, patients stop taking prescribed antibiotics too soon. Or they assume that a lingering infection will go away if they have taken all their medication. But you need to take antibiotics until the infection is gone to prevent the bacteria from growing and becoming antibiotic-resistant.

When Should You Get Wisdom Teeth Removed?

Although each patient’s case is different, you should have your wisdom teeth removed as early in life as possible if they are problematic. Even if you do not feel pain, your dentist should monitor your wisdom teeth to see their position. If teeth are impacted or so far back in your mouth that they are challenging to clean, an infection will develop eventually.

Ask your dentist or oral surgeon to remove your wisdom teeth before they get infected or begin to hurt. The American Academy of Oral and Maxillofacial Surgeons confirms that tooth roots grow deeper and jawbone hardens as we age. Both factors can make wisdom teeth removal and recovery more challenging.

We wish you a progressive recovery. After you are in good oral health, you can begin Zoom whitening treatment without a relapse.

David Finley, DDS of Monroe, LA, sponsors this post. Dr. Finley is an accredited Fellow of cosmetic dentistry.