While your braces are designed to be rather durable, they are not impervious to damage. Chewing on gum or sticky foods and crunching down on hard foods, are some of the most common ways that braces are damaged.
If some piece of hardware does bend, break off, or come loose,it will likely increase the number of adjustment sessions and the duration of time it takes for your braces to realign your teeth. Proper first aid and timely repair are essential for minimizing further complications. To that end, Dr. Michael Jacobsen offers these basic tips.
If a piece of hardware is damaged or comes loose, it could seriously injure your cheek or gums. If part of it is still attached to any other part of your braces, you should not attempt to remove it. This could cause even more complications.
When your braces were initially installed on your teeth, Dr. Michael Jacobsen gave you a piece of special orthodontic wax. You can try to secure the broken hardware or sharp points inside the wax to protect your teeth or gums from being punctured. If you don’t have the orthodontic wax on hand, you can improvise with a pencil eraser.
It’s not unheard of for a spacer to fall out shortly before you are due for your next adjustment session. If this happens, you should call Dr. Michael Jacobsen and he can assess the situation and determine the best course of action. Most of the time, the best solution is simply to schedule an earlier adjustment session.
If some part of your braces is damaged, bent, or loose, you need to call Dr. Michael Jacobsen’s office in Victorville, California at 760-951-7752 to have it repaired.