Relieve Pain & Fix Braces & Clear Aligner Issues
True orthodontic emergencies are rare, but issues may arise occasionally while straightening your smile. A quick fix can often help keep you comfortable until you can make it to our office.
Rubbing and poking, loose pieces of braces and wires that have slipped out of place can all be temporarily resolved with a bit of know-how.
Once you've addressed your discomfort, it is very important that you still contact our office to schedule a time for us to properly repair the issue. Allowing your appliance to remain damaged for an extended period of time may impact the success of your orthodontic treatment.
Below, we offer some simple tips and tricks to help relieve general discomfort and temporarily resolve appliance issues until you can see your orthodontist.
How to Address Common Orthodontic Issues
Follow these steps to relieve discomfort and manage common appliance problems until your appointment with us.
General Soreness
When you get your braces on, you might experience some general soreness in your mouth, and your teeth may feel tender to biting pressures for three to five days. Stick to a soft diet until chewing no longer causes discomfort in your teeth.
Rinsing your mouth with warm saltwater can relieve irritated gums and sore spots. Dissolve one teaspoon of salt in eight ounces of warm water and rinse vigorously. For severe tenderness, take Acetaminophen (Tylenol®) or your usual pain reliever.
For severe tenderness, take Acetaminophen (Tylenol®) or your usual pain reliever. Avoid frequent use of Aspirin, Ibuprofen (Motrin®, Advil®), and Naproxen sodium (Naprosyn®, Anaprox®), as these medications can slow down tooth movement during orthodontic treatment with braces.
The lips, cheeks, and tongue may become irritated for one to two weeks after you first get your braces as they get used to them. You can put wax on the braces to reduce the friction. We'll even show you how!Loose Bracket
If your bracket or band is still attached to the wire, you should leave it in place and apply wax to it if needed for comfort. If the bracket or band can be easily removed, place it in an envelope and keep it to bring to your next appointment.
Loose Wire
Using tweezers or needle-nose pliers, try to put the wire back into place. It is okay to use a piece of floss to secure the wire in place: tie the floss around the bracket instead of the missing coloured o-ring.
If you're unable to adjust the wire comfortably and wax doesn't help, you can use a small fingernail clipper to trim the wire behind the last secured tooth. This should be used as a last resort. If the wire's end remains sharp, apply wax to it.
Loose Appliance
If your appliance is poking you, place wax on the part that is sticking out.
Poking Wire
Using a pencil eraser, press the wire down or apply wax to it so that it is no longer poking.
Lost or Damaged Aligner
Call us to let us know if an aligner is lost or damaged. You can either return to the aligner you wore just before the lost one (if you still have it) or start your next aligner ahead of schedule.
The best option will depend on how long you wore the lost aligner. If you had only just started wearing it, go back to the previous one. If you wore it for over a week, it may be best to move to the next one.