“Does bad taste in my mouth after a tooth extraction mean dry socket?”
I have a bad breath after a tooth extraction. Does bad taste in mouth after tooth extraction mean dry socket?
6 Answers
Dry sockets are very painful. If that's the case, yes. Bad breath after extractions can be normal due to presence of occasional minor blood, necrotic tissue, and lack of brushing due to fear or pain.
No. Food frequently gets packed in and around the extraction socket site. It can produce a foul smell until flushed and cleaned properly. If 48 hours have passed, typically you’re safe to irrigate the socket. Do not poke inside it… just use a plastic big tip syringe and flush with warm water. Other solutions can be better based on your specific condition.
Dr. J
Dr. J
If a BAD taste and BAD breath is accompanied with fever and pain in the area it could well be osteitis or ‘dry socket’- need to be on antibiotics right away; and seek your Dr.’s follow-up care
It can mean many things, please contact your dentist. It can be from the medication your taking that is why your taste buds are a little disturbed it goes back to normal in 3-5 days. Every patient is different when taking meds.
Dry socket usually occurs 5-7 days after an extraction and is characterized by severe, acute pain. Bad breath is more indicative of possible infection. I would follow up with your dentist as soon as possible.
Not necessarily. A dry socket is when a membrane fails to form over the extraction socket after the tooth is removed, which leads to the bone being exposed and "dries out". There may or may not be an odor associated with a dry socket, so you have not provided enough information to determine what is happening to you.
