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Dr. Gregg Frey Orthodontics > All About Braces > Care of Your Appliances
Choose Your Look
To successfully complete your treatment plan, you must work together with Dr. Frey and his orthodontic team. Your teeth and jaws can only move toward their correct position if you consistently wear the rubber bands, headgear or other appliances as instructed. Damaged appliances lengthen the treatment time.
 Orthodontics and Sports
If you are involved in contact sports, we advise that you wear a sports mouth guard to protect your teeth and braces during these sports. Mouth guards are inexpensive, comfortable and come in a variety of colors. Ask one of our orthodontic technicians about how to obtain one.
Emergency Care
Orthodontic emergencies don't occur very often, but even the most careful patient may occasionally damage their appliance or experience some minor discomfort. Some situations may require a visit to our office, while others can be remedied at home or with instructions over the phone from Dr. Frey. By calling our office we can access the situation and if needed set a specific time aside for you to correct the problem. Here are a few guidelines:
- Wire Pokes are the most common minor problems. They may be wires that have shifted or broken. You can relieve the discomfort with your orthodontic wax or safely turn down the wire end using a pencil eraser, tucking it out of the way of the soft cheek or tongue. You can also carefully clip the end with a nail clipper. If the discomfort still remains or the wire is broken, call our office to schedule an appointment to have this adjusted or repaired.
- Loose Bands or Brackets may occur during treatment. Call us and we can determine if you need to come right in. If the bracket or band comes off, save it and bring it in when you come to the office.
- A Broken Arch Wire, the main wire that goes around the outside of your braces, is important to replace as soon as possible. This is responsible for the movement of the teeth and if not replaced can delay treatment results. Call our office at once to schedule a specific appointment time.
- Missing Spacers may be necessary to replace if they comes out more then 24 hours before your scheduled bonding appointment. Spacers create needed space for bands or appliances to be placed. Once the space has been achieved the spacer may fall out. This is not an emergency, but call our office if you do not have a scheduled appointment within a day or two.
 - A Damaged Appliance, that is bent or ill fitting, should not be worn until it can be repaired or adjusted in our office. Call our office to schedule this repair.
- A Missing Elastic or Metal Tie (Ligature) is not an emergency. Call our scheduling coordinator to arrange a time to replace the ligature.
- A Direct Injury to the Mouth or Teeth is usually the most serious type injury. If this occurs, your family dentist should see you as soon as possible to determine the extent of the injury and take an x-ray of any effected teeth. If any orthodontic appliances are broken or displaced, Dr. Frey should do a follow up visit as soon as possible.
If an emergency occurs after normal office hours, call one of our office phone numbers, listen for Dr. Frey's beeper number. By dialing the beeper and leaving a contact phone number, Dr. Frey or one of our orthodontic technicians can be in touch very quickly.
If any of these situations occur and you find it necessary to call our office, it's important to know the names of the parts of your appliances. The following diagram will help you identify what part is broken or out of place.
Go to the Braces Diagram
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