Dry Socket : A Review of Etiology, Diagnosis, and Management

Abstract

Alveolar osteitis commonly called as dry socket, alveolalgia osteomyelitis, fibrinolytic osteitis and localized osteitis alveolalgia. It is commonly seen after tooth extraction mainly in third molar extraction. It is a severely painful condition characterized by dislodgement of the blood clot that forms in the socket, leading to exposure of bone. The aproximity in incidence for all routine extraction is 3% and for impacted Mandibular third molar it reaches upto 30%. This review aims to provide an in-depth understanding of dry socket (alveolar osteitis) including it’s pathophysiology, risk factors, prevention strategies and clinical management.