Mouth Guards and Dental Emergencies

The importance of mouthguards:

A mouthguard, usually a flexible piece of plastic that fits into the mouth, should be worn during all recreational and athletic activities to protect the mouth and teeth from serious injury - especially activities where there is contact or potential contact with another person, piece of equipment, or the ground. In particular, mouthguards should be worn during the following sports:

• football

• soccer

• rugby

• wrestling

• baseball

• softball

• lacrosse

• field hockey

• ice hockey

• martial arts

• boxing

Some of these sports require the use of a mouthguard at the amateur level.

Many recreational activities such as skateboarding and bicycling, also pose a risk of injuring the mouth and teeth. Exercise caution during these activities.

Mouthguards and preventable injuries:

Injuries to the teeth, mouth, and head may include the following, many of which could be prevented with proper and consistent use of a mouthguard:

• dislodged or knocked out tooth/teeth

• concussion

• cerebral hemorrhage

• broken or chipped tooth

• bitten or lacerated tongue and/or lip

• objects caught/lodged between the teeth

• jaw fracture