“How long after dental anesthesia can I drink?”

You are encouraged to drink as tolerated after anesthesia. But must also consult your dentist and your specific Anesthesialogist.

As soon as the local anesthetic wears off, usually 2-4 hours

Almost immediately depending on your dental work.

Steven Dain

I would think you could drink as tolerated, but consult your dentist

Your question is not entirely clear. By dental anesthesia, do you mean local anesthesia (injected to numb the area of need), sedation (as for wisdom tooth extraction or nitrous oxide [laughing gas]), or general anesthesia (as for whole mouth restoration)? And by "drink," do you mean adult beverages, soft drinks, or both?

Obviously, you should follow the instructions provided by your dentist. With local anesthesia, you can drink any time, but it's probably best to avoid hot beverages like coffee or tea until the local anesthetic wears off. With sedation you should not have alcoholic beverages or drive or make any legal decisions until at least the next day. Same for general anesthesia.

You are not supposed to drink etoh after any procedure. Healing could be affected and also could get infected.