I accidentally pulled out my stitching string for 1/4 of my wisdom teeth extraction sites, what happens now?

Question

I had all 4 of my wisdom teeth removed on Wednesday (2 of which were impacted at the bottom). Recovery has been slow but bearable. Last night I decided to stray from my apple sauce and yogurt diet and try KD Mac & Cheese. After I started feeling a long string from the upper back area of my tooth and thought it was a string of food. I pulled out the string and immediatly started bleeding. I rinsed my mouth out with salt water immediatly and put a gauge in for 15min. to stop the bleeding, in which it did.

My dentist is off on vacation for another week so I can't call him for any advice. What should happen now? I am afraid that I tore out stitching too early...

Answer 1

Even if your dentist is away, call their number. They should have an emergency contact. Get their opinion. If you haven't had any swelling or complications then you should be fine.

Answer 2

It may hurt a little more, but you should be ok. Be careful about what you eat & rinse your mouth out very carefully. If you have a lot more pain, you could have a "dry socket" and you'll need to see a dentist/oral surgeon.

Answer 3

Your dentist will have a backup person on call for emergencies just like a physician would.  I would call the regular office phone number today and listen carefully to the answering machine message.  It will probably have a phone number to call for emergencies.  Besides the bleeding issue, you could have opened the wound and exposed it to bacteria and infection.  The emergency dentist could tell you not to worry or could tell you to meet him/her at the office.  

Answer 4

Don't worry too much.  It's been a few days.  Just keep the gauze in there as you need it.  You will be just fine.  Wisdom teeth!   Grrr!

Answer 5

Just be very careful when eating and brushing, and it'll heal fine.  But if I were you, go see your dentist as soon as you know he's back.  I'm surprised your dentist didn't use the kind of string that dissolves within a few days (mine did).