A clinical study of dry socket in Sri Lanka.

An investigation into the incidence and other features of dry socket in Sri Lanka was considered worthwhile as working conditions, general health of patients and related factors may be different in developing countries. The present study was conducted at two institutes which provide differing facilities and conditions. The overall incidence was found to be 3.5% which is similar to figures reported in the U.K. and Europe. The pattern of dry socket as seen at the two institutes regarding delayed onset, lower molar site specificity, female predominance and relation to difficulty of extraction was similar to each other and to those described in previous studies. These findings support a multifactorial aetiology as does a review of the recent literature.