Had an apicoectomy recently and honestly, the procedure itself wasn't too bad (thank you, local anesthetic), but the aftermath... whew. The soreness and swelling were definitely not my favorite part of the week. Anyway, figured I'd share a little tip I stumbled onto that made things way more bearable.
I found that keeping a small gel ice pack (the kind you get for sports injuries) wrapped in a thin towel and gently holding it against my cheek every 20 mins or so did wonders. It helped keep the swelling down, and honestly, numbed the ache a bit. Also, I stocked up on smoothie ingredients beforehand—because chewing was not exactly on my wishlist for a couple days. Frozen bananas, berries, yogurt, and a bit of honey blended up was a lifesaver. Tasty, filling, and didn't hurt at all going down.
One thing I wish I'd known earlier: sleeping with my head propped up on an extra pillow made a huge difference in comfort level overnight. I didn't think it would matter much, but it really helped reduce swelling by morning.
Curious if anyone else has any other little tricks or hacks that helped them out after an apicoectomy. Always good to have more ideas handy, you know?
I went through an apicoectomy about a year ago and yeah, the aftermath is definitely the worst part. Your smoothie idea is spot-on—I practically lived on smoothies and soups for a few days. One thing that really helped me was rinsing gently with warm salt water a couple times a day. It sounds basic, but it seriously helped soothe the gums and kept things clean without irritating the area too much.
Also, if you're budget-conscious like me, you might not want to splurge on special gel packs. I just froze a damp washcloth in a ziplock bag—worked just as well as the store-bought ice packs, honestly. Plus, it's soft enough to mold comfortably around your cheek.
Another thing: I found that ibuprofen worked better than acetaminophen for swelling and pain relief. Obviously check with your dentist first, but alternating between ibuprofen and acetaminophen every few hours was a lifesaver for me.
And yeah, sleeping propped up makes such a difference. I stacked two pillows and added a rolled-up towel under my neck for support—felt weird at first but really helped reduce swelling overnight.
It’s not exactly fun, but hang in there... it gets better pretty quickly after the first few days.
