General Soreness and Irritation

When you get your braces on, you may feel a general soreness in your mouth and your teeth may be tender for three to five days. If the tenderness is severe, take aspirin or whatever you normally take for a headache or similar pain. The lips, cheeks and tongue may also become irritated for one to two weeks as they become accustomed to the surface of the braces.

You can put wax on the braces to lessen this.

Sores may appear as your lips, tongue and cheeks toughen as they become accustomed to the braces as well, this can be relieved by rinsing your mouth with a warm saltwater mouthwash. Dissolve one teaspoonful of salt in 8 ounces of warm water, and rinse your mouth vigorously. Sometimes your jaw may be sore as well. A warm wash cloth or heating pad may reduce this.

Pokey Wire

Sometimes discomfort is caused by a wire on your braces can be resolved by moving the wire away from the irritated area with a cotton swab or eraser. If the wire will not move, try covering the end of it with a small piece of wax. If the wire is painful, you can trim it with nail clippers or scissors that have been washed and sterilized in alcohol. Please see the video to watch a wire being clipped.

We appreciate you letting our office know if you having discomfort or issues with your wires.

Loose Brackets or Bands

Please notify our office immediately if a bracket or wire is loosened, so that we can schedule an appointment for you.

The bracket may need to be re-fitted as soon as possible. You may have a situation that requires cutting a wire or sliding a bracket off a wire at night or over the weekend. If you need to cut a wire in case of emergency, you may use fingernail clippers that have been washed and sterilized in alcohol. If you need to remove a bracket that has come off, please use the video as reference.

Expander Turning Difficulties

Some patients come across difficulties when turning their expander. This does happen from time to time, don’t worry, you can use the video on the left with common expander troubleshooting topics. It is important the expander key is in completely and you are turning towards the throat. Please reference the video for an example expander turn.

Forsus Springs

Some patients have the springs on their forsus appliance come detached. This can sometimes be something you are able to fix yourself. You may view the video on the left to watch a demo on replacing forsus springs. The office can also assist in walking you through the steps.

Lost Separators

Some patients lose a separator during their treatment. Do not stress about losing a separator! Simply notify our office to see if and when it needs to be replaced. We can help assist in making sure that the separators are back in place where they should be.

You can also watch this instructional video on how to replace it at home.