Treatment for Dry socket

In dentistry, a dry socket is a layman's term for alveolar osteitis. The alveolus is the part of the jawbone that supports the teeth, and osteitis means simply “bone inflammation”. It is an irritation of the bone open to the oral cavity after the loss of or premature disintegration of the blood clot.

Alveolar osteitis is a painful phenomenon that most commonly occurs a few days following the removal of mandibular (lower) wisdom teeth. It occurs when the blood clot within the healing tooth extraction site is disrupted. In rare cases, the removal of the upper wisdom teeth can also result in alveolar osteitis.
The pain from alveolar osteitis usually lasts for 24–72 hours. There is no real treatment for dry socket — it is a self-limiting condition that will improve and disappear with time — but certain interventions can significantly decrease pain during an episode of dry socket. These interventions usually consists of a gentle rinsing of the inflamed socket followed by the direct placement within the socket of some type of sedative dressing, which soothes the inflamed bone for a period of time and promotes tissue growth. This is usually done without anesthesia.[4] The active ingredients in these sedative dressings usually include natural substances like zinc oxide, eugenol, and oil of cloves. It is usually necessary to have this done for two or three consecutive days, although occasionally it can take longer. Because true dry socket pain is so intense, additional analgesics are sometimes prescribed.