Kids, forget what you've been told about dental hygiene: Sometimes not taking care of your teeth can be a good thing.

Exhibit A: Lil Wayne. The Grammy-winning, megaselling rapper avoided a trip to jail today thanks to some emergency grillwork.

Weezy, 27, was due to be sentenced to about a year in one of Manhattan's finest lockups after copping to a gun charge last fall. Instead, he'll remain free for the rest of the month so he can take care of a dental problem.

His lawyer, Stacey Richman, said Wayne needed to have a cracked tooth repaired. He is scheduled for surgery in Miami this Friday, she told the court, and he'll need about 10 days to recover.

Judge Charles H. Solomon said that Wayne must be back on March to face the music. And no more delays.

"I don't want this to get pushed back anymore," he told Wayne. "This is the last adjournment."