Reviewed by Megan Reznik, DDS, MS
Most orthodontic problems are not emergencies. A loose bracket, a poking wire or general soreness can almost always be managed at home until the next available appointment. Real urgency means severe pain, significant swelling, or a tooth injury. If you are unsure, call: Odessa (432) 333-7105, Midland (432) 682-1222.
Both offices are open Monday through Thursday, 8:00 AM to 5:00 PM, and closed Friday. Repairs are handled by appointment rather than on a walk-in basis, so calling first gets you seen faster than turning up does.
What to do right now
A wire is poking your cheek, lip or gum
Cover the end with orthodontic wax or beeswax; a pea-sized piece pressed over the wire will usually stop the irritation immediately. If wax is not enough, ease the wire away from the sore spot with the eraser end of a pencil or a cotton swab. Do not cut a wire unless the office has told you to.
Wet cotton over the wire works if you have run out of wax. If the irritation continues, call the office for guidance.
A bracket or band has come loose
Leave it where it is. In most cases a loose bracket or band can stay in place until your repair appointment, held by the archwire. Do not pull at it, and do not try to reattach it yourself. Call the office so the repair can be booked, and mention it at your next scheduled visit if that is soon.
Something has been knocked out or broken in your mouth
Apply ice straight away to limit swelling. If a tooth has been knocked out, moved, chipped or fractured, contact your family dentist first. They may need X-rays and their own treatment before any orthodontic appliance is adjusted.
Once the dentist has seen you, call this office if braces, wires or appliances were damaged. The doctors will check the treatment and make whatever adjustments are needed to keep it on track.
When to call, and when it can wait
Call the office promptly for severe pain, swelling that is getting worse, an appliance that has come out entirely, or any injury involving the teeth or jaw.
It can wait until the next available appointment if it is a loose bracket, a wire that wax is holding comfortably, a lost elastic, or a tooth that feels slightly loose during treatment. Teeth loosening slightly as they move is expected; they firm up in their new positions once treatment ends.
Unless you have been told otherwise, keep wearing your rubber bands. Stopping because something else broke is one of the more common ways a case quietly falls behind.
If it happens on a Friday or over a weekend
Both offices are closed Friday through Sunday. Call your usual office number and follow the instructions on the recording, which cover how to get assistance and who to contact.
In practice the guidance above handles nearly everything that happens over a weekend. Keeping a small kit at home makes it easier: orthodontic wax, a soft toothbrush, spare elastics if you wear them, and a pain reliever you already use.
Sports, mouthguards and braces
Anyone playing a contact sport should be wearing a mouthguard over their braces, and one is provided as part of treatment here. Tell the office what sport you play so it can be fitted properly rather than bought off a rack.
A mouthguard does two jobs at once for a patient in braces. It protects the lips and cheeks from being driven into the brackets, and it protects the teeth themselves from an impact that would otherwise cost you far more than a bracket. If you wear clear aligners instead, take them out before putting a mouthguard in, and put them straight back afterwards.
Football, basketball and everything else with contact in it are worth planning for before the season starts rather than during it. Raise it at a routine visit.
Aligner problems
Clear aligner patients have a different set of things that go wrong, and none of them is urgent in the way a bracket coming off in the middle of the night feels urgent.
A tray that cracks should not be taped, trimmed or glued. Stop wearing that one, put in the previous set to hold your position, and call the office. If an attachment comes off a tooth, note which tooth and keep wearing the tray until you are seen; a single missing attachment rarely stops progress on its own.
A lost aligner is the one that needs a call rather than a decision. Whether you go back to the previous set or move forward to the next depends on how far into the current tray you were, and guessing can cost weeks of treatment. See Invisalign for how the sequence works.
Keep a kit at home
Most of what happens between appointments is manageable if you already have four things in a drawer: orthodontic wax, a soft toothbrush, spare elastics if you wear them, and whatever you normally take for a headache.
Ask for extra wax at any visit. It is not rationed, and running out on a Saturday is the single most common reason a small irritation turns into an uncomfortable weekend.
Contact us
Odessa: 3831 E 52nd St, Odessa, TX 79762, (432) 333-7105 Midland: 4810 Loop 250 Frontage Rd, Ste A, Midland, TX 79707, (432) 682-1222
Monday to Thursday, 8:00 AM to 5:00 PM. Not a patient here yet? Request an appointment; consultations are free.
Frequently Asked Questions
Will I be charged for an emergency repair visit?
It depends on the repair and on your treatment plan. The office will explain any fee before the work is done, so nothing arrives as a surprise afterwards.
A bracket came off two days ago and nothing hurts. Do I still need to be seen?
Yes, at some point. It does not need to be today, but a bracket that is not attached is not moving that tooth, and leaving it for weeks extends treatment. Call and book it into the next convenient slot.
Can I cut a poking wire myself with nail clippers?
Not unless the office has specifically told you to and explained how. Sterile clippers, the right spot and a plan matter here, and a wire cut in the wrong place can cause a bigger problem than the one it solved.
My child swallowed a piece of an appliance. What now?
Call the office and describe what came off. Small orthodontic components usually pass without incident, but anything causing coughing, choking or breathing difficulty is a medical emergency and needs immediate care, not a call to an orthodontist.