Our business is creating beautiful smiles you can embrace for a lifetime, but caring for your teeth is the first and most
important step in achieving that goal!
Proper oral hygiene practices are crucial to attaining the beautiful smile you’ve always wanted and deserve. This includes brushing and flossing at least twice a day but regular checkups with your family dentist are also very important while in orthodontic treatment. Your family dentist will determine the intervals between cleaning appointments while you are in treatment.
Once treatment begins, we will explain the complete instructions and provide a comprehensive list of foods to avoid. The basic rule of thumb is to stay away from anything hard, sticky, chewy or crunchy. These foods include but are not limited to: ice, hard candy, raw vegetables, caramel, taffy, hard chips (tortillas / Doritos), nuts, pizza crust. You can avoid most emergency appointments to repair broken or damaged braces by carefully following our instructions.
Mana S.
“Dr. Desh is a compassionate, brilliant, and talented orthodontist. I’d entrust the orthodontic care of my patients, friends and family to her.”
Spencer P.
“Dr. Desh is bright, energetic, fun and extremely talented at what she does!!”
Frank B.
“Dr. Desh is a fantastic orthodontist! Her warm manner and clear explanations help make visits easy and pleasant.”
Sandra C.
“Dr. Desh is phenomenal and great at what she does, I highly recommend her for orthodontic treatment. She is truly a life changer and makes you feel more confident with your smile.”
Kristin M.
“Heather is a top notch orthodontist and a great person. She is friendly and wants the best for your children! You won’t regret going to her for your whole family’s ortho needs!”
You should always feel free to contact us with any issues, but please be assured there are very few true orthodontic emergencies. Most problems can be remedied at home and do not need immediate attention in the office. Our first concern is the comfort of the patient and this page will walk you through some basic steps to help make the patient more comfortable at home.
You may take acetaminophen or other non-aspirin pain relievers while you adjust to your new braces. A warm wash cloth, heating pad or warm salt water rinses may reduce the soreness in your jaws.
Try moving the wire away from the irritated area with a cotton swab or eraser. If the wire will not move, try covering the end of it with a small piece of cotton or a small amount of wax. If the wire is painful, you can cut it with nail clippers or scissors that have been washed and sterilized in alcohol.
First, call our office to see if the bracket needs to be re-fitted. If you have a situation where you must cut the wire or slide a bracket off the wire, you may use nail clippers or scissors that have been washed and sterilized in alcohol. Please call our office on the next business day to schedule a repair appointment.
Call our office to see if it needs to be replaced. Some patients may lose a separator during treatment, which is common.
Download and print this handy Orthodontic Emergency information sheet for easy reference at home.
