Expanders

• Please turn your expander as Dr. Howard and her staff have instructed you. Turn at the same time every day to develop a routine and to keep the interval of expansion even. The key must be put into the appliance and pushed back as far as it will go to turn the expansion screw.
• If you feel a lot of discomfort or pain, stop turning the appliance and call our office.
• Use wax as needed. Dry off the area of the appliance that rubs with a Q-Tip and press a small ball of wax onto the surface. Rinse with warm salt water the first few days and as needed thereafter (one teaspoon salt in a glass of warm water).
• Brush well around appliances and teeth. Swish with water or fluoride rinse to clean around the palatal portion.
• Rinse daily with a fluoride rinse such as ACT, Listermint, Flourigard, Oral B, or a generic. Follow the directions on the bottle.
• Avoid hard and sticky foods such as ice cubes, jawbreakers, gum, caramel, taffy, popcorn, peanuts… etc.
• As you begin to get some expansion you may notice a space developing between your two front teeth. This is normal, so don’t be alarmed! Dr. Howard will close this space as you go through treatment.

For more information regarding the care and maintenance of your braces, please visit www.braces.org, the official site of the American Association of Orthodontists.