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Sports Mouthguards

About 25 million youth play competitive sports in the United States and about 36 percent of all unintentional injuries among children and adolescents are a result of sports. Out of these, about 10-20 percent injuries are maxillofacial traumas.

Prevention of Dental Injuries

Dental injuries during sports are preventable. Experts recommend that athletes should wear mouthguards during sports in which contact and collision are likely to occur. These include basketball, rugby, football, baseball, skateboarding, wrestling, boxing, martial arts, volleyball, soccer, squash, surfing and more.

The National Youth Sports Foundation for Safety states that athletes who don’t wear a sports mouthguard are 60 times likely to sustain fractured, dislocated, and loose teeth.

What are Sports Mouthguards

A sports mouthguard is a device that is typically worn on the upper arch of the athlete’s teeth to protect the mouth from blows to the face and head. These appliances prevent broken or loose teeth, cut tongue, lips, and cheek and other injuries to the mouth. If you wear metal braces or other non-removable dental appliances, we at Reich Dental Center – Roswell recommend wearing a mouthguard on your lower teeth as well.

Functions of Sports Mouthguard

Sports mouthguards have several benefits:

•	These devices prevent bruising and laceration of the soft tissues of your mouth by acting as a buffer and preventing the teeth from cutting your lips, cheeks, and tongue.
•	Mouthguards prevent tooth fractures and dislocation by cushioning the impact of direct blows from the front on your mouth.
•	Opposing teeth are protected from jarring contact with each other.
•	The elastic, buffering support of the mouthguard protects the jaw from damage and dislocation.
•	Custom-fitted mouthguards fill gaps left by missing teeth and offer support to the neighboring teeth. Therefore, youth who wear removable prostheses can take them out during a match.

Types of Sports Mouthguards

There are various types of sports mouthguards; however, only custom-fitted mouthguards that are durable, tear-resistant and comfortable can provide you adequate protection during sports.

•	Stock mouthguards: Though these mouthguards are affordable and come in ready-to-wear forms, they don’t fit at all and can feel cumbersome and bulky in the mouth. As they do not fit your teeth properly, they provide almost no protection to your teeth and may even be more damaging than wearing no mouthguards at all.
•	Boil-and-bite mouthguards: Boil-and-bite mouthguards are quite popular among athletes. These mouthguard need to be boiled so that they become soft and conform to the shape of your teeth when you bite down on them. These mouthguards offer better fit than stock mouthguards, though their soft material often gets bitten through by athletes. Hence, they need to be replaced frequently.
•	Custom-fitted mouthguards: At Reich Dental Center – Roswell, we offer you custom-fitted sports mouthguards which are designed to have the perfect match for your teeth. Our doctor will make an impression of your teeth and then fabricate the mouthguards based on them. These mouthguards feel better and fit better and last a long time.

Wearing a mouthguard during sports is imperative for your continued oral health as dental trauma can carry wide-ranging and long-lasting repercussions for you. If you want us to make a mouthguard for you, contact us at 770-992-3353 and schedule an appointment with us today.

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Reich Dental Center – Roswell

Robin Reich, DDS | Stacey Wingad, DMD | Megan Reich Rihan, DMD
Kristin Cooney, DMD | Lauren Hughes, DMD

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770-992-3353

1775 Woodstock Rd, Suite 350 Roswell, GA 30075

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Reich Dental Center - Roswell, 1775 Woodstock Rd, Suite 350 Roswell, GA 30075 • 770-992-3353 • roswell.reichdentalcenter.com • 3/28/2021 • Related Phrases: dentist Roswell GA • dentist Roswell GA •