Influence of Surgicel gauze on the incidence of dry socket after wisdom tooth extraction.

At a hospital in Damman, Saudi Arabia, it was noticed that many patients had developed dry socket after surgical removal of wisdom teeth. To enhance haemostasis, Surgicel (oxidized cellulose) gauze was sometimes used in the tooth socket in patients who were operated under general anaesthesia. An analysis was made of the records of 104 lower wisdom teeth removed surgically from 86 patients. The incidence of dry socket in the 20 Surgicel-treated teeth was 25.0%, compared with 6.0% among the 84 non-Surgicel-treated teeth. The use of Surgicel in wisdom tooth extraction seems to be associated with an increased incidence of dry socket.