By Eric V. Thomas, DMD of Sunshine Dentistry
Fall is here and school is back in full swing. Weekends are now centered around our student’s sporting events. Have you gotten your athlete a custom mouthguard to protect his or her smile?
Teen and adult athletes experience thousands of injuries each year during their sporting activities. Athletes wear all kinds of protective gear such as helmets and knee pads, but did you know injuries to the face in nearly every sport can harm your teeth, lips, cheeks and tongue?
Properly diagnosed, designed and custom fabricated mouthguards are essential in the prevention of athletic oral/facial injuries and protecting your athlete’s teeth and smile. Contact sports such as football, boxing, hockey and other non-contact sports such as gymnastics have the potential to seriously harm the head, face or mouth as a result of head-to-head contact, hazardous falls, tooth clenching or blows to the mouth.
It is estimated by the American Dental Association that mouthguards prevent approximately 200,000 injuries each year in high school and collegiate football alone. Injuries sustained while participating in sports activity include but are not limited to tooth fractures, avulsion, luxation, extruded tooth or lateral displacement of a tooth.
Sports for which you may need a mouthguard include: acrobatics, basketball, bicycling, boxing, dance, equestrian events, field hockey, football, gymnastics, ice hockey, ice skating, inline skating, lacrosse, martial arts, racquetball, rugby, skateboarding, skiing, skydiving, soccer, softball, squash, surfing, volleyball, water polo, weightlifting and wrestling.
Why is a custom fabricated mouthguard recommended?
The most commonly used mouthguards on the market are stock mouthguards or boil and bite mouthguards. These mouthguards are generally purchased at a sporting goods store for a nominal fee and come in three general sizes: small, medium and large. They are bulky, lack retention and interfere with speech and breathing. These types of mouthguards are often altered and cut by athletes in an attempt to make them more comfortable to wear, resulting in an even further reduction in their effectiveness, and increasing the chance of injury and in some cases, the chance of a concussion.
Custom made mouthguards are designed and supplied by your dentist. The dentist is able to address important issues in the fitting of the mouthguard such as what is the particular sport being played? What is the age of the athlete and are there any erupting teeth? Does the athlete have any history of previous dental injury or concussion, thus needing additional protection in a specific area? Is the athlete undergoing orthodontic treatment? Are there any cavities or missing teeth? These are questions a sporting goods store employee cannot begin to address.
Custom made mouthguards made by a dentist are the most effective of all types of mouth protectors . They can be adapted for the individual, and provide retention, comfort and stability of material with very little interference with speaking and breathing.
Sunshine Dentistry can help protect your athlete’s smile with a custom mouthguard. For more information, call Sunshine Dentistry at (609) 465-5415 or visit www.mysunshinedentistry.com.
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