Vaping and Dry Socket
Dentists are telling vapers to avoid vaping following dental surgery – but does the evidence support this position or has it been extrapolated from knowledge about smoking?
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by Dave Cross
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Dentists are telling vapers to avoid vaping following dental surgery – but does the evidence support this position or has it been extrapolated from knowledge about smoking? There is a variety of information, the majority of it originating from American websites, but it runs slightly at odds with the information given out by the NHS.
What is ‘dry socket’?
Following oral surgery where a tooth has been extracted, the NHS says dry socket (alveolar osteitis) is a possible complication: “Dry Socket is a common complication following tooth removal. Normally, a blood clot forms in the socket, this protects the socket as it heals and forms the foundation for new bone and soft tissue growth. A dry socket occurs when a blood clot fails to develop in the tooth socket, or if the blood clot becomes dislodged or disappears. This usually happens 3 to 5 days after the extraction procedure.”
The NHS lists the symptoms as an ache or throbbing pain that feels like toothache, bad breath, a bad taste in the mouth, and/or the tooth socket looks empty (“you may see bone instead of a blood clot”).
Those who have experienced a dry socket describe it as having an unbearable level of pain.
The NHS lists of those most at risk of developing dry socket:
- Smokers
- If you’ve had the condition before
- You’re over 25 years old
- If the extraction was complicated
- Following wisdom tooth removal, especially lower
- Female sex, especially if on the oral contraceptive pill
No mention of vaping, and this is a theme that continues onto the NHS’ aftercare advice:
- Regular gentle warm salt water mouth rinses at least 4 times a day
- Maintain good oral hygiene
- Take regular pain relief as required
- Avoid smoking and use of tobacco products
- Drink plenty of clear fluids
Yet dentists in the UK are still adding in an advisory about vaping.
David Rice, Chief editor of Dentistry IQ, offers advice to fellow professionals on how to “educate your extraction patients and prevent a great many problems.”
He says that dentists need to tell their patients not to:
- rinse for the first 24 hours
- spit for the first 24 hours
- use a straw for the first 24 hours
- drink excessively hot beverages for the first 24 hours
- smoke or vape for at least three days
His website states: “Many patients who are smokers find it difficult to refrain from smoking after extractions. Make sure to educate your patients on how smoking dramatically increases their risk of experiencing a dry socket. In a study conducted in 2011 in Palestine, 12% of smokers experienced dry socket compared to only 4% of non-smokers. If your patients can discontinue smoking for 24 hours, it will make a difference—and 48 hours is even better. The frequency of smoking was also found to increase the incidence of dry socket.”
So, despite suggesting dentists advise vapers not to vape, the body of text in the second doesn’t provide any supporting research evidence.
In a 2021 study, “What should every dental health professional know about electronic cigarettes?”, the paper’s Australian authors state that the latest position of dental associations is that the oral health implications of vaping compare to those of smoking.
There again, they also claimed: “Growing evidence demonstrating the risks of E-cigarette usage has prompted a review of legislation in the United Kingdom.”
This was completely untrue – but then this is a trio of researchers who also state that there are “low levels of evidence that E-cigarettes improve smoking cessation”. Another complete fabrication.
“There is little evidence as to the effect E-cigarettes have on oral health,” they continue, before adding a load of guesses, might’s, could’s and maybe’s.
But, when it comes to the risk of alveolar osteitis/dry socket, the team are honest enough to state: “No evidence exists examining E-cigarettes and their association with dry socket.”
Planet of the Vapes is not advising vapers to ignore their dentist’s advice and vape after oral surgery. The purpose of the article is to demonstrate that research needs to be conducted into this area so that dentists and patients can make better informed decisions.
Photo Credit:
Photo by Ozkan Guner on Unsplash
Dave Cross
Journalist at POTVDave is a freelance writer; with articles on music, motorbikes, football, pop-science, vaping and tobacco harm reduction in Sounds, Melody Maker, UBG, AWoL, Bike, When Saturday Comes, Vape News Magazine, and syndicated across the Johnston Press group. He was published in an anthology of “Greatest Football Writing”, but still believes this was a mistake. Dave contributes sketches to comedy shows and used to co-host a radio sketch show. He’s worked with numerous start-ups to develop content for their websites.
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