Pain and exposed jaw bone

[Marian]

Hi,
I had a lower 5 tooth removed 3weeks and 4 days ago. It was a difficult extraction. I still have pain and am woken at night with the throbbing so have to take pain killers. Things are healing extremely slowly. I still have a hole and exposed bone. Will my mouth continue to heal itself naturally or do I need dental treatment?

 

[Dr M]

If the exposed bone is cutting your tongue, I would suggest going back to your dentist so that it can be trimmed. After about a week, the pain should be getting less. If the pain is not reducing and you have a bad smell or taste in your mouth, there is a high chance that you might have a dry socket. This is common with bottom teeth. You will then need to see your dentist, so that the socket can be cleaned out and in some cases, antibiotics will be prescribed.

 

[MattKW]

3 weeks is a very long time in a healthy person. Even dry sockets would normally heal by themselves in this time without dental intervention. Do you take any meds to stop bone loss from osteoporosis in your bones?
Go back to dentist. Antibiotics are unlikely to be helpful unless dentist decides you have an infection. Dry socket is NOT an infection.