My kid has trauma due to braces. Should I get the brackets removed?

Question

Hello doctor,

My eight year old daughter had braces. Almost 24 hours later she had 103° temperature and the doctor at urgent care said she had trauma from the braces. I then met with the orthodontist and told her that the urgent care doctor said my daughter had trauma due to braces and that my daughter was in severe pain screaming and crying for the past 24 hours. She offered to only take the wires in the springs off but I said I wanted everything off including the brackets or windows. She said that removing the brackets would cause even more trauma. Is this true?

Answer 1

Hello,

Welcome to icliniq.com.

Braces for an eight year old is quite rare. They are still in the development and eruption period. Removing the brackets will not cause further trauma. But it will be a total waste. Orthodontic treatment initially causes discomfort, but it will be alright in time. I suggest you to let the brackets be there and the tissue trauma caused by brackets can be avoided by keeping wax over the sharp points or edges of the brackets. You can ask your dentist for a wax sheet. Ask your kid to maintain oral hygiene with orthodontic brushes and gargling (lukewarm water and salt will be better) after every meal. If there is severe pain, you can go for Paracetamol, but with the doctor's consent. For ulcers, you can apply Dentogel topically just before a meal. I would like to know why this brackets treatment has been started.