The patient has a big mouth [F.A.

]
This article discusses a dentists responsibilities when faced with the ingestion
or aspiration of part of their patients braces or appliance, either in their clinic
or at the patients home.
These processes most often occur during active procedures, such as banding
or bonding, cutting the distal ends off archwires and debonding, but can also
occur passively whilst the patient eats, plays sport or engaged in other
physical activity.
When an object is ingested only palliative care is required and patients should
be instructed to check their stool for visual verification of the objects passage.
Additionally, the patient can choose to follow the object radiographically as it
passes through the body. However, some objects, such as pink acrylic due to its
similarity to mucosal and cartilaginous tissues and ceramic brackets due to
their radiolucency are difficult to identify in an x-ray.
When an object is fully or partially aspirated the patient must be immediately
transported to the nearest emergency care centre or hospital emergency room
to locate the object and identify the best method for its removal.
The risks associated with ingestion or aspiration should be included in the
informed consent document, thus providing notice to the patient, as one would
do with all material risks.