deals with the prevention and treatment of oral and facial injuries that can happen when participants compete in sporting events. While sports injuries are common — especially those to the mouth, teeth and jaw — many can be avoided or minimized with the use of a properly fitted dental mouth guard from our Troy, MI, dentists.
We know from experience that sports mouth guards are not only essential for football players, boxers, and hockey players, but for athletes in many non-contact sports as well. Examples include rollerblading, gymnastics, soccer, volleyball, baseball, wrestling and skateboarding. Any injuries to the teeth, mouth, and jaw can be prevented by properly fitted by our dentists.
The overall cost of repairing a tooth well exceeds the minor cost of a properly fitted mouth guard. Our Troy mouth guard dentists can ensure proper fit and function of your child’s mouth guard to help prevent costly and debilitating oral or facial injuries during sports participation.
How Do Mouth Guards Work?
Sports mouth guards are worn over your upper teeth to protect against injury while you’re playing in a game or on your own. A properly fitted mouth guard should be sturdy and durable, easy to clean, comfortable, resist tears, and should not restrict breathing or talking. Our dentists can create a custom mouth guard designed to protect your teeth from a contact injury to your mouth or facial area.
Learn More → Differences Between Mouth Guards and Night Guards
The 3 Types Of Mouth Guards Include:
- Stock: A basic mouth guard that is inexpensive, comes ready to wear, and can be found at sporting goods stores. These pre-formed mouth guards are not always the most comfortable, can disrupt breathing or talking, and provide minimal protection. In addition, you cannot adjust them to fit properly and because of this, our dentists don't recommend this type of mouth guard.
- Boil and Bite: These guards fit better than stock mouth protectors and are made from thermoplastic material — which can be softened in hot water and then placed in your mouth and shaped around the teeth.
- Vacuum or Laminate-Pressed: These are custom-fitted, like in our Troy, MI, dental office, and are based on professional instructions. First, our dentists will make an impression of your teeth and mold a mouth guard over the model using a special material. Due to the materials used and precise tooling required to ensure proper fit, these mouth guards cost more but offer more comfort and protection.
The generic stock or ‘boil and bite’ mouth guards bought at sporting goods stores do not offer adequate support for an athlete’s teeth. Everyone’s teeth have unique characteristics — and age, gender, sport, competition level, and position all play important roles in the type of mouth guard your child needs to properly protect their teeth and jaw.
Related Post → 6 Facts About Your Sports Mouth Guard
For patients who wear braces or another fixed dental appliance, our dentists can create a mouth guard for your lower teeth as well.
Give Our Troy Office a Call
To learn more about mouth guards and how our , can help, call Mosaic Dental today at (248) 528-2270 or contact us online.
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