Why Do Cheeks Tend to Swell Following Oral Surgery?
Posted on 10/25/2018 by

Oral surgery will not only affect the area being treated directly, but the rest of your mouth will feel its effects as well, including your cheeks.

It is critical that you follow all the instructions we give you to minimize and reduce the swelling as soon as possible after the procedure. This will help speed up your recovery and have you feeling better soon.

It is very common for patients to have swollen cheeks after an oral procedure. Every patient is different, and some are lucky and barely get any swelling. However, our goal is to make you as comfortable as possible after surgery.

Swollen Cheeks After Oral Surgery

When you have oral surgery, you go through a traumatic experience, especially during an extraction. We are removing a tooth that has been part of your mouth up until this point, and other areas will be affected by this process, including the cheeks.

The swelling of the cheeks happens when your body starts to heal the damage from the surgery. While it can be uncomfortable to have swollen cheeks, it is perfectly normal and expected. Swelling will peak between 24 to 48 hours after surgery and will begin subsiding after that.

If everything is going well with your recovery, the swelling should not get worse. If you notice that it’s not improving, call us immediately, as this can be a sign of infection.

It is imperative to ice your face as instructed by our staff. Applying ice for 20 minutes on and 20 minutes off throughout the day for the first two days will significantly reduce the swelling. You also must keep your head elevated to encourage blood flow and dry socket healing.

If the swelling of your cheeks has not subsided or has gotten worse after three days let us know right away and we will bring you in.