Dry socket can occur after any dental extraction. It is recognized when:
- Initial pain from surgery is better
- Then, the pain returns to the same area
- Socket becomes very painful
- Pain medication does not work
- Pain spreads to front of the jaw and/or to the ear
Depending on how painful it is, you may have to come into the Clinic to get the socket treated with medication. Dry socket is more common in the lower jaw. It is more likely to occur in females than males, females who take birth control pills, older people and smokers.
Remember that you may have only a few or all of the symptoms described depending on the difficulty of your extraction(s).