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Yesterday I had gum graft surgery. Everything went well, I have good meds to keep the pain at bay, and I have been sleeping a lot. In the pic above you can see that my lower left cheek is swollen.
My periodontist is Dr. Sheppard McKenzie IV (http://www.raleighperio.com/mckenzie.php). He performed 2 types of grafts: a Connective Tissue Graft on my lower left molars and a Free Gingival Graft on my lower front teeth. The tissue for the grafts was harvested from the roof of my mouth, where I now have a stent to cover the wound.
A Connective Tissue Graft (CT) takes tissue from under healthy gum tissue in the palate (roof of mouth), which may be placed at the area of gum recession. This procedure has the advantage of excellent predictability of root coverage, as well as decreased pain at the palatal donor site compared to the free gingival graft. The connective tissue graft is a very common procedure for covering exposed roots.
A Free Gingival Graft (FGG) is a dental procedure where a small layer of tissue is removed from the palate of the patient's mouth and then relocated to the site of gum recession. It is sutured (stitched) into place and will serve to protect the exposed root as living tissue. The donor site will heal over a period of time without damage. This procedure is often used to increase the thickness of very thin gum tissue.
Got the laughing gas going here.
Torture devices.
Meds are good.
The white strings are the stitches.
The white gummy looking material is "packing" over the FGG.
Lots of blood.
As far as post-op recovery goes:
- Use an ice pack to reduce swelling
- No physical activity for the first 48 hours
- Cold soft foods for the first 24 hours, after the first 24 hours the diet restriction is to just keep to soft foods
- No brushing teeth, use mouth rinse instead
- Wear stent to protect the harvest site at the roof of the mouth
- Take medications as prescribed: I have 2 different pain meds (hydrocodone & etodolac), an antibiotic (arithromycin), and a mouth rinse (chlorhexidine gluconate). The pain meds are to be taken alternating every 4 hours, the antibiotic is to be taken once per day, and the mouth rinse is to be used twice per day - morning and night.
The meds.
The stent.
My post-op appointment is set for Wednesday, March 5th at 8:30am.
Good to hear from you! The post-op healing period usually lasts from four to five weeks. Proper medication and following your periodontist’s advice can help speed up the recovery. Wishing you the best!
ReplyDeleteBillie Adams
Oh wow, that really is a lot of blood. My dentist recommended I get gum grafts. How was the recovery? I am just trying to figure out how much work I will need to take off or if it is something I can have done over the weekend.
ReplyDeletehttp://www.jacksonvilleperiodontist.com/Treatments/GumGrafting.aspx