Importance of mouth guards in sports

It has been shown that properly fabricated, custom-made, mouth guards from your dentist can reduce the rate of concussion, as well as dental and mandibular injuries. Repeated concussions appear to impart cumulative damage, resulting in increased severity and duration with each incident. {{more}}Therefore, it is imperative to diagnose and deliver proper custom-made mouth guards to athletes after an episode of concussion.

In reality, the chance of having a second concussion is four times greater than the chance of sustaining a first.

Catastrophic brain swelling may occur following a second minor head injury in individuals who are still symptomatic from a prior concussion.

Some Facts about Sports Safety

Dental injuries are the most common type of orofacial injury sustained during participation in sports; the majority of these dental injuries are preventable.

1. An athlete is 60 times more likely to sustain damage to the teeth when not wearing a protective mouth guard.

2. The cost of a fractured tooth is many times greater than the cost of a dentist diagnosed and designed professionally made mouth guard.

3. Every athlete involved in contact sport has about a 10 per cent chance per season of an orofacial injury, or a 33-56 per cent chance during an athletic career.

4. Victims of knocked out teeth who do not have a tooth properly preserved or replanted may face high lifetime dental costs, hours in the dental chair, and the possible development of other dental problems, such as periodontal disease.

6. It is estimated that mouth guards prevent a high number of injuries.

7. The stock mouth guard which is bought at sports stores without any individual fitting, provides only a low level of protection, if any. If the wearer is rendered unconscious, there is a risk the mouthguard may lodge in the throat, potentially causing an airway obstruction.

Dr Keith John

Email: drkeithjohn@gmail.com

Clinic: Heritage Dental

Tel: 784-456-2220

Cell: 784-526-0752