Need emergency care? We’re here for you and your child.
Quick guide for orthodontic emergencies
For the first week after your child gets braces or clear aligners and then again after routine adjustments, they’ll feel some soreness or discomfort. Though a bit unpleasant, it’s totally normal and nothing to worry about. Here are a few ideas to minimize pain:
- Older kids can swish for 20–30 seconds with a little salt water. (1 teaspoon salt dissolved in a cup of warm water)
- You can give your child acetaminophen or another non-aspirin, over-the-counter pain reliever.
- Apply a warm washcloth or heating pad to the sore area.
- Hand your kiddo a bowl of ice cream and turn on their favorite show.
Put on your investigator hat and ask some questions. Where is the pain located? How long has it been going on? Did they wear their mouthguard during physical activities or sports? Their answers will help you know what type of emergency you are dealing with.
You will also be very stressed. That’s ok. Take a minute to take some deep breaths and calm yourself—you’ll think more clearly and ease your child’s stress. An acute orthodontic emergency, whether from sports or other accidents, involves bleeding and possible missing teeth. Your child may first need immediate attention from their medical doctor or ER in case they require stitches. If a permanent tooth is knocked loose, hold it by the crown, rinse it in water, then put it back in its socket and hold it there with a clean cloth. Call us asap. If your child doesn’t need medical attention, Dr. Black can adjust their braces as needed once the soft tissue has healed. Treatment can be picked up right where it left off.
After the initial adjustment period, archwires shouldn’t poke your child’s mouth or irritate their cheeks and gums. If a wire is poking, you can use a clean cotton swab or the eraser end of a pencil to move it away from the irritated area. If you can’t move the wire, cover the poking end with a small piece of cotton or wax. If this intervention doesn’t mitigate the pain, you can snip the wire with fingernail clippers or scissors that have been washed and sterilized in alcohol. If you need to cut the wire or can’t resolve the wire irritation, call us for an appointment.
If a bracket, band, or archwire is loose, call our office right away. It’s possible that Dr. Black will need to refit the bracket. If the problem happens at night or on a weekend, you might need to slide your child’s loose bracket off and save it in a small plastic bag until you can bring them in to fix it.
- Older kids can swish for 20–30 seconds with a little salt water. (1 teaspoon salt dissolved in a cup of warm water)
- You can give your child acetaminophen or another non-aspirin, over-the-counter pain reliever.
- Apply a warm washcloth or heating pad to the sore area.
- Hand your kiddo a bowl of ice cream and turn on their favorite show.
It’s normal for kids to lose a separator over the course of their treatment. If they do, call our office to check if it needs to be replaced.
Some brackets have small hooks on to hold elastics (rubber bands) in place. These hooks can occasionally become irritating to your child’s lips or cheeks. If this happens, try using a pencil eraser to carefully push the hook in or you can place a ball of wax on the hook to make the area feel smooth.
Schedule an appointment right away so we can make sure your child’s teeth are ok and appliances are in good working order. If any part of your child’s appliance breaks off, try to find it and bring it in. Remember that sports mouthguard!