Risk factors
By Mayo Clinic staffFactors that can increase your risk of developing dry socket include:
- Smoking and tobacco use. Chemicals in cigarettes or other forms of tobacco may prevent or slow healing and contaminate the wound site. The act of sucking on a cigarette may physically dislodge the blood clot prematurely.
- Oral contraceptives. High estrogen levels from oral contraceptives may disrupt normal healing processes and increase the risk of dry socket.
- Improper at-home care. Proper at-home care after a tooth extraction helps promote healing and prevent damage to the wound. Failure to follow guidelines may increase the risk of dry socket.
- Having dry socket in the past. If you've had dry socket in the past, you're more likely to develop it after another extraction.
- Tooth or gum infection. Current or previous infections around the tooth to be extracted increase the risk of dry socket.
- Use of corticosteroids. These types of medications, such as prednisone, may increase your risk of dry socket.
References
- Neville BW, et al. Oral and Maxillofacial Pathology. 3rd ed. St. Louis, Mo.: Saunders Elsevier; 2009:120.
- Summers A. Emergency management of alveolar osteitis. Emergency Nurse. 2011;19:28.
- Roberts JR, et al. Clinical Procedures in Emergency Medicine. 5th ed. Philadelphia, Pa.: Saunders Elsevier; 2010. http://www.mdconsult.com/das/book/body/202633129-4/0/2083/0.html#. Accessed May 27, 2013.
- Krakowiak, PA. Alveolar osteitis and osteomyelitis of the jaws. The Oral and Maxillofacial Surgery Clinics of North America. 2011;23:401.
- Cardoso CL, et al. Clinical concepts of dry socket. Journal of Oral and Maxillofacial Surgery. 2010;68:1922.
- Dodson T. Prevention and treatment of dry socket. Evidence-Based Dentistry. 2013;14:13.
- Preparing for third molar removal. NIH Clinical Center. National Institutes of Health. http://www.cc.nih.gov/ccc/patient_education/tests_procedures.html. Accessed May 27, 2013.
- Daly B, et al. Local interventions for the management of alveolar osteitis (dry socket). Cochrane Database of Systematic Reviews. http://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1002/14651858.CD006968.pub2/abstract. Accessed May 27, 2013.
- Fenton DA, et al. Perioperative strategies for third molar surgery. Atlas of the Oral and Maxillofacial Surgery Clinics of North America. 2012;20:25.
- Sheridan PJ (expert opinion). Mayo Clinic, Rochester, Minn. June 26, 2013.


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