Braces encounter a lot of contact on a daily basis. From eating to physical activity, it’s actually very common for damage to happen to the delicate structure working to fix your smile. Our Hemphill Orthodontics team will explain to you what you need to do when braces break so you aren’t caught off guard.
Breaking Down Braces
Before starting treatment with braces, patients usually don’t have a good idea of the various parts that make braces work. Dr. Hemphill wants to review these components with you before explaining how they can undergo damage.
- Brackets: We use a semi-permanent adhesive to secure these small pieces of metal or ceramic to your teeth for the entire duration of your treatment.
- Wires: Your brackets are connected by wires, which can be tightened and adjusted intentionally at certain intervals to guide the movement of your teeth.
- Additional Components: In some cases, we’ll add extra components like orthodontic rubber bands, which can be placed so that they’ll apply focused pressure on certain areas.
How Does Damage Happen?
There are plenty of potential culprits for braces being broken. Some can be prevented, while others happen spontaneously. Either way, the important thing is for our patients at Hemphill Orthodontics to be aware of the following risks:
- Accidents or Falls: Even with a flawless braces maintenance routine, unexpected accidents can still occur. Sudden trauma to the mouth in many situations can lead to broken braces, bent wires, damaged gum tissue, or even teeth being knocked loose.
- Injuries from Sports: The risk of injury is particularly high during certain contact sports, like football or hockey. Many of these injuries occur when patients aren’t wearing a mouthguard.
- Prohibited Foods: Food is a popular culprit for damaging braces. This can happen when you eat crunchy or sticky foods—especially hard candies, tough breads, or sweets.
- Using Teeth as Tools: Biting down on objects like ice cubes or pens and pencils can be a common idle habit in many people. This can be bad for teeth with or without braces.
- Incorrect Cleaning: Improper or rough cleaning methods can cause brackets to become loose over time or even bend wires. Always check with Dr. Hemphill to make sure your cleaning habits are correct.
- Poor Oral Health: Did you know that plaque buildup actually weakens the adhesive holding brackets to teeth? Many patients don’t! This is one of many reasons that diligently cleaning your teeth is so important.
- Missing Appointments: We’re equally adamant about making sure you attend every appointment as scheduled with Hemphill Orthodontics, so that we can make sure your appliances are maintained.
- Swallowing a Component: Yes, this does happen occasionally. It is usually not an emergency, but please let us know if this occurs so that we can advise you.
Addressing Damage
We do want to give our patients a disclaimer: If you or your child are experiencing a medical emergency with symptoms like dislodged teeth or bleeding that will not stop, please visit your nearest emergency department or urgent care center to get immediate medical attention.
For other mild to moderate damage to your braces, you can contact our office for an emergency appointment. Here is what we recommend doing in this scenario:
- Assess the Damage: Be sure not to panic! Begin by examining the state of your braces in a mirror and identify the following conditions:
- Is a bracket loose or detached?
- Is a wire poking or bent?
- Is a band on a molar missing or loose?
- Call Us Quickly: When you call us with your assessment, we will schedule an emergency repair appointment with Dr. Hemphill. If we aren’t able to see you right away, we’ll provide you with measures to manage the damage in the meantime.
- Managing a Loose Bracket: Orthodontic wax can be used to secure loose brackets in place if they’re still attached to the wire.
- Managing Poking Wires: You can also use orthodontic wax to help cover sharp or broken wires that might be causing irritation to the soft tissues of your mouth. It can provide a barrier and minimize discomfort.
- Managing Pain: Over-the-counter pain medication like Tylenol or ibuprofen can be great for helping ease mild or moderate pain you might experience. Warm salt water rinses can also be a good home remedy, especially if there’s any areas of rawness on your gums or cheeks.
- Keep Up with Cleaning: In the meantime, you can gently brush or floss around the damaged area. If this feels too difficult or unsafe, contact us for additional guidance on how to keep the area clean until we can see you.
- Avoid Further Damage: When your braces are broken, do your best to avoid activities that can make matters worse. Additionally, we suggest refraining from trying to repair your braces on your own, as this almost always leads to more problems.
Professional Problem Solvers
One thing we can assure our patients of is that our expert team has seen and managed a wide variety of issues with braces—and we’re very good at fixing them! Please don’t hesitate to reach out to our Celina office if you’re experiencing trouble with your braces.
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Dr. Hemphill