Prevent Sports-Related Trauma with Custom Mouthguards in Medfield - Sports Dentistry
The number one means of preventing sports-related intraoral trauma is the athletic mouthguard. Mouthguards cushion truamatic blows to the face and head and reduce the incidence of head and neck injuries.
Sports in which mouthguard protection is recommended include football, boxing, ice hockey, wrestling, field hockey, lacrosse, basketball, baseball, and soccer.
Injury rates of male and female athletes are quite similar and mouthguard protection is recommended for both sexes.
The ideal mouthguard must protect the teeth, lips, oral mucosa and gum tissues. It must stay in place, be well adapted to the teeth, and not encroach on the airway. The athlete must be able to speak and comunicate freely. It should be pliable, yet bite and tear resistant; and it must be comfortable to wear.
Three categories of mouthguards are available:
- Stock mouthguards: “one size fits all,” poorest fit, least protection.
- Mouth formed mouthguards: “boil and bite,” somewhat better fit with added protection.
- Custom formed mouthguards: Formed by a dentist, custom adapted to the teeth. Best fit, least bulk, most protection, easiest communication.
Studies have shown mouthguards reduce the risk of concussion. It has been estimated that mouthguards prevent between 100,000 and 200,000 football injuries per year.
Athletes: Please ask us for more information about a custom mouthguard to protect your teeth.
75% of oral athletic injuries occur in athletes not using mouthguards. 40% of those injuries are to baseball and basketball players. Participants not wearing a mouthguard are 60 times more likely to sustain hard tissue trauma.
Many of today's mouthguards are nearly 100% effective in preventing oral injury, also reducing the incidence of concussion, neck injury, and broken teeth.
We strongly recommend mouthguards for all our patients who participate in sports activities.
