EMERGENCIES RELATED TO ORTHODONTIC APPLIANCES
Appliances can be broken or bent during your orthodontic care. If you have a loose bands, broken brackets or poking wires, please call our office and let us know what has happened. We will always do out best to accommodate your schedule, but sometimes it’s not possible to handle emergencies on a walk-in basis. In the meantime, here are some helpful hints to remedy some of the problems you may encounter until our office can see you.
- This video demonstrates how to handle a simple orthodontic emergency.
- If a tie wire is irritating your mouth, cover it with beeswax or chewing gum. You can also tuck it under the arch wire with a blunt object like a pencil eraser or Q-tip.
- A loose band or bracket can usually be left in place. If this happens, please call us and we’ll schedule an appointment to reattach the loose appliance.
- A broken or poking archwire can be bent in with a pencil eraser or cut with nail clippers.
Direct Injuries to Mouth and Teeth
Following a direct injury to your mouth or teeth, whether undergoing orthodontic care or not, immediately ice the injured area and contact your family dentist. If a tooth has been displaced, avulsed (knocked out) or fractured we may not have the necessary materials or anesthesia required to treat these injuries. Usually an x-ray is needed to determine the extent of injury. If the orthodontic appliances are disrupted we’ll need to replace or adjust the appliances as soon as possible depending upon the comfort level of the patient.
After Office Hours Answering Service
If an orthodontic emergency arises after hours, please contact our answering service at (217) 875-8569.