Congratulations! You have just taken a giant step to having the best smile ever.

While you are in braces, if you should have a problem, try these "home remedies" first, and if these don’t give you any relief, please call us Monday through Friday at 888-FENDER4. After hours and on the weekends, for Douglas and Baxley, call 912-309-2829, and for Tifton, call 229-392-6240 and leave a message – your call will be returned as soon as possible.

As a general rule, always keep the wax that we give you near by. Our wax is your "First-Aid Kit." You can usually place wax on anything that is causing discomfort and it will feel better until you can get in to see us. If you go out of town and forget to bring your wax, most drugstores carry wax. Listed below are some things that you might try before calling the office.

WIRE STICKING — Try feeling the very back of the wire with your fingernail and try to slide it back around and center the wire. If this doesn’t work, place some wax on the back of the wire and call our office for an appointment.

LOOSE BRACES — If one of your braces should come loose, this is NOT an emergency. If the bracket is not hurting you or cutting you, it is perfectly fine to wait until the next available business day to have it repaired. One exception being, if you are scheduled to have your braces removed at the next appointment, then you would want to call us on the next business day so we can repair the loose bracket. As a general rule, loose braces do not hurt, they are just annoying. Place a small ball of wax over the loose bracket to keep it from moving around. If a loose bracket actually comes out of your mouth, please save it and bring it with you when you come in for your appointment.

PAIN — There are a couple of things that may cause discomfort while you are wearing your braces. After each adjustment, you may experience some soreness for a couple of days. Generally Tylenol or Advil (or whatever you take for a headache) will take care of the soreness.

APPLIANCES — As with any appliance, if any part of it comes loose or breaks, save the piece and bring it with you when you come in to see us. Call our office on the next business day and schedule an appointment to come in and have your appliance repaired. If the entire appliance breaks and you can take it out, do so and call us to schedule an appointment to have it put back in. Please save the appliance and bring it with you. If your appliance has any rough spots that are irritating your mouth, place some wax on the spot that is rough and call us on the next business day and we will get you in to check it for you.

SWOLLEN OR PUFFY GUM TISSUE — Swollen gums are caused by not properly brushing and cleaning your teeth. Not only do you need to brush your teeth and braces, your gum tissue is equally important. You should spend a minimum of 3 minutes brushing after you eat. Flossing between your teeth helps remove any particles of food that may have gotten under your gum tissue. When your gum tissue is swollen, you will notice that your gums bleed when you brush. Don’t let that stop you from brushing – the bleeding is part of them shrinking back down to normal size. KEEP BRUSHING. Rinsing with warm saltwater helps speed up the healing process. When a patient comes in with swollen gum tissue, we will usually go over the brushing instructions with them.

LOOSE TEETH — It is not at all unusual for your teeth to feel loose when you are wearing braces, as we are moving them from one position to another. When your teeth are where they are supposed to be and your braces are removed, your retainers are worn to hold your teeth in their new position and they will tighten back up.

After hours emergencies

Drs. Fender and Goggans are dedicated to providing quality service to their patients – this includes emergencies after business hours. Should you have an emergency after hours or during the weekend, for Douglas and Baxley patients, call 912-309-2829 and Tifton patients, call 229-392-6240 and one of our staff members will call you back as soon as possible.

layout element