Spring sports are upon us and while these sports are important for building your child’s confidence, team working skills, and physical endurance, there is also an inherent risk of injury. According to the American Academy of Pediatric Dentistry, about 10-39% of childhood dental injuries are sports related.
Although we can never completely remove all risk of dental injury from playing sports, most of these injuries could have been easily prevented had the athlete been wearing a mouthguard:
Fractured Tooth
Enamel and dentin are both protectors of the inner living tooth tissue also known as the pulp. In the event of a serious tooth factor, both the dentin and the pulp tissue would be exposed, calling for an immediate visit to the dentist. To prevent the tooth from completely falling out, the dentist may splint the loose tooth by bonding it to adjacent teeth.
A minor fracture involves chipping of the enamel only. Your child may feel sharp or rough tooth edges irritating the cheek and tongue. Generally, the only thing that the tooth would need is a filling or a cap to protect the pulp from any exposure.
Lost Teeth
Commonly, the upper front adult teeth run the highest risk of being knocked out. In this case, retrieve the lost teeth, keep them moist, and replace them into their sockets as soon as possible. Time is precious, teeth re-implanted within an hour of the incident often reattach to their teeth sockets.
Teeth Displacement
Instead of a tooth being completely knocked out of its sockets, it’s simply displaced. The tooth may be pulled out a bit to appear longer or pushed in to appear shorter. A displaced tooth can be twisted, turned, but never leaves the mouth. The sooner your child sees a dentist the easier it will be to bring it back into proper alignment, whether through splitting or orthodontic brackets and wires.
There’s no need to risk it, any mouth guard is better than NO mouth guard. But when trying to choose which one to go with, how do you decide which is best for your child? Check out our blog “Mouth Guard or No Mouth Guard” to determine the best type of mouthguard for your child to keep their teeth safe from injury. Feel free to discuss your options with us today!
Although we can never completely remove all risk of dental injury from playing sports, most of these injuries could have been easily prevented had the athlete been wearing a mouthguard:
Fractured Tooth
Enamel and dentin are both protectors of the inner living tooth tissue also known as the pulp. In the event of a serious tooth factor, both the dentin and the pulp tissue would be exposed, calling for an immediate visit to the dentist. To prevent the tooth from completely falling out, the dentist may splint the loose tooth by bonding it to adjacent teeth.
A minor fracture involves chipping of the enamel only. Your child may feel sharp or rough tooth edges irritating the cheek and tongue. Generally, the only thing that the tooth would need is a filling or a cap to protect the pulp from any exposure.
Lost Teeth
Commonly, the upper front adult teeth run the highest risk of being knocked out. In this case, retrieve the lost teeth, keep them moist, and replace them into their sockets as soon as possible. Time is precious, teeth re-implanted within an hour of the incident often reattach to their teeth sockets.
Teeth Displacement
Instead of a tooth being completely knocked out of its sockets, it’s simply displaced. The tooth may be pulled out a bit to appear longer or pushed in to appear shorter. A displaced tooth can be twisted, turned, but never leaves the mouth. The sooner your child sees a dentist the easier it will be to bring it back into proper alignment, whether through splitting or orthodontic brackets and wires.
There’s no need to risk it, any mouth guard is better than NO mouth guard. But when trying to choose which one to go with, how do you decide which is best for your child? Check out our blog “Mouth Guard or No Mouth Guard” to determine the best type of mouthguard for your child to keep their teeth safe from injury. Feel free to discuss your options with us today!
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