Gums won't stop bleeding after deep cleaning

[italiannyc17]

Got my deep cleaning 6 hours ago and this part of my mouth will just not stop bleeding. Alot of blood to spit out. Its also behind the tooth on the bottom.

heres a pic .. any ideas .. and is it normal

[broken link to image removed]

 

[italiannyc17]

Anyone? 12 hours later and im still bleeding and i believe im cloting in the front and back of my bottom front teeth.

 

[comfortdentist]

First thought is have you taken any blood thinners or aspirin recently?
Occasionally tissue may ooze blood longer up to 24 hours when the areas are really inflamed.

 

[Jaylah]

For anyone worried about this in the future:

I am on blood-thinners (Coumadin/warfarin) for an artificial heart valve, and my gums can seep blood for several days after a deep-scaling. It's annoying, and I look like Dracula after a feeding frenzy , but it isn't life threatening.

Both aspirin and ibuprofen also tend to work as "blood thinners", so if you are taking either of those for pain after this kind of a procedure, they will tend to cause your gums to seep blood for a while longer, too. Acetaminophen (the active ingredient in "Tylenol") doesn't do this, so it might be helpful to take Tylenol or a generic equivalent instead.

So what to do if it's already happening and it's too late to change your pain med?

My dentist recommended that I moisten a regular tea bag (or bags) and place them over the place where the bleeding was occurring. I know...seems weird, but it does work. The tannin in black tea helps stop bleeding. (So this won't work if you use herbal tea bags.)

As to the clots, I'd suggest just leaving them be. Once your gum stops bleeding in that area, the clot will dissolve in your saliva, but as long as your gum is still seeping blood, it needs the clot in place to stop. So removing the clot on your own may make your gum bleed longer.