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I had my wisdom teeth surgically removed about 10 days ago; last night I discovered that one of the healing places now has a small hole in it that is too deep to see the bottom of. I can shine a flashlight into my mouth and see in the mirror that it is definately a hole and not some sort of food particle or anything. The stitches in that place are already dissolved. It isn't causing any pain and I can eat and drink without pain. But there's a hole there. Is this a dry socket? Is it something that I should notify my oral surgeon about?

Dry socket, otherwise known as 'Acute Alveolar Osteitis', is an inflammatory process which causes loss of the blood clot in the extraction site and pain from exposed nerve endings. Since you are not experiencing discomfort, you may have simply disrupted the blood clot or one may never have formed. This being the case, your extraction site is still likely to heal normally. If, in the future, you develop discomfort, swelling, or other signs of infection, I urge you to contact your surgeon.

 

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