As attachments are only temporary and will be removed either during or after treatment, they may occasionally come away from the tooth. If this occurs, please let us know at your next appointment. Your attachment can very easily be replaced if necessary.
The attachments are placed to assist with specific tooth movements, but don’t worry, your teeth will still move without them. So please continue with your treatment as normal and change your sets of aligners as instructed.
If you have been instructed to use elastics for bite correction and one of the metal anchoring buttons has fallen off, please discontinue using the elastics for now. We can address this at your next appointment and the button can very easily be replaced, if necessary.
If a bracket breaks, comes away or is loose on your wire, it is best to leave the braces as they are. If the bracket or wire is causing irritation, you can place wax over the area for now. When placing wax, use a cloth or face towel to dry the area, then gently press a small piece of wax onto the area using light pressure. This will create a smooth surface to minimise irritation, and it may also be used to stabilise a bracket that is loose on the wire until your next appointment.
Most of the time, a broken bracket can wait until your next appointment and can be managed at home using the above methods. However, please call us when this happens, to ensure you have the best advice for your situation and treatment.
If your wire is poking into your gums or cheeks and causing you discomfort, please call us as this is very easily fixed and we can arrange an appointment for you to have your wire trimmed in no time.
If attending the clinic is inconvenient for you or you are looking for a temporary fix, you can apply some wax to the area. Its best to dry the area with a cloth or towel to help the wax stick, roll a small amount of the wax and press it directly onto the area using light pressure.
If your wire is poking into your gums or cheeks and causing you discomfort, please call us as this is very easily fixed and we can arrange an appointment for you to have your wire trimmed in no time.
If attending the clinic is inconvenient for you or you are looking for a temporary fix, you can apply some wax to the area. Its best to dry the area with a cloth or towel to help the wax stick, roll a small amount of the wax and press it directly onto the area using light pressure.
Please do not panic, this is not a dental emergency and can wait until your next appointment with your orthodontist. If you are still feeling concerned or experiencing irritation of any soft tissue in your mouth, please do not hesitate to contact us.
When you commence treatment, we will recommend that you hold on to your previous set of aligners in case you misplace or damage your current set.
If this has happened, we recommend you switch back to your previous set of aligners, so you have something to hold your teeth in their current position. As you know, without aligners in place, your teeth are at risk of moving out of position, which may throw off your treatment plan.
Please contact us to determine if replacement aligners need to be made.
If you do not have any aligners available to wear, please contact us immediately, so that we can organise another solution for you.
Invisalign Chewies (the small rubber blocks you will have received when you collected your first sets of aligners) are used to help seat your aligner by minimising the airspace between the aligner and the teeth. Sometimes you will need to use this for specific teeth more than others. Each time you insert your aligner, gently bite down on the Chewie as you would a piece of chewing gum, using light pressure, from one side of your mouth to the other, ensuring all teeth have been contacted. This will improve the fit of the aligner, allowing for the most successful movement.