During the 2013 World Series, I was sitting at Fenway Park watching Shane Victorino play with his mouthguard between pitches. Sitting 50 feet from him allowed me to see that it was a clear custom-made appliance. Athletic mouthguards are virtually identical to nighttime appliances that patients wear for grinding or snoring conditions.
Photo by Karl Arakelian
Photo by Karl Arakelian
The possibility of dental trauma is not great in Fenway’s outfield, but it underscores the importance of protecting one’s teeth.
If dental trauma occurs in an athletic setting, then the activity should be discontinued immediately. Obviously, a concussion should be ruled out prior to any dental assessment or treatment.
Dental trauma can range from a banged tooth or a bruised root to a complete avulsion (the tooth comes completely out of the socket). Treatment ranges from ice and pain management to jaw surgery and tooth replacement.
Mouthguards are not mandatory in many states for many sports, and common sense should prevail, but it does not. Athletic guards are a virtually foolproof way to prevent most oral and many head injuries. But athletes, young and old, seem reluctant to sport an appliance due to speech/breathing limitations and hygienic concerns.
The National Federation of High Schools currently mandates the use of mouthguards in football, field hockey, ice hockey, lacrosse and wrestling (for wrestlers wearing braces). (NFHS.org) But more education and enforcement is needed to outfit more athletes with better fitting (either custom or semi-custom) mouthguards.
Please call Dr. Karl Arakelian at 978.373.0901 or visit KarlArakelianDMD.com .
