Athletic Mouthguards
Perfecting your athletic game when you are worried about sports-related oral injuries is hard. Wearing an athletic mouthguard allows you to spend less time worrying about injuries and focus more on perfecting your chosen sport.
Dr. Martinez at Victorian Village Dental Care in Columbus, Ohio has experience creating and designing customized athletic mouthguards.He has helped hundreds of athletes across a wide variety of sports protect their oral health.
What Is an Athletic Mouthguard?
Athletic mouthguards are like a proactive cushion for your teeth. They are placed over your teeth. If you should experience some type of hit, blow, or collision that causes the sudden movement of the head or upper body, the athletic mouthguard lessens the impact by absorbing some of the shock and trauma. This dramatically reduces your chances of experiencing an injury.
Some of the types of injuries that an athletic mouthguard protects against include:
- Broken or chipped teeth
- Soft tissue injuries to the lips, mouth, cheek and tongue
- Damage to the root of the teeth
- Loss of Teeth
Benefits of Wearing an Athletic Mouthguard
Athletic mouthguards do more than just protect your teeth and gums. They may be able to reduce your risk for concussions.
If you are wearing an athletic mouthguard and experience a hit to the head, your jaw movements will be limited because the mouthguard absorbs some of the force. This dramatically reduces your risk of experiencing a concussion.
Of course, the athletic mouthguard you wear needs to fit properly to reduce your risk of concussion. Working with the Victorian Village Dental Care team, your customized athletic mouthguard will be designed to meet your individual needs and provide you with maximum protection.
Store Bought vs. Customized Athletic Mouthguards
It is better to wear an athletic mouthguard from a retail store or sporting goods store than not to wear one at all. However, if you want the best protection, a customized athletic mouthguard is ideal.
The benefits of wearing a customized athletic mouthguard include:
- Enhanced comfort – Custom-made athletic mouthguards are thinner and less bulky than store-purchased mouthguards.
- Customized for your individual sport – Athletic mouthguards can be custom made to fit in a helmet or around other types of athletic gear.
- Fit better – Our dental team ensures the mouthguard covers all your teeth and stays in place while in use.
- Helps with breathing – Many athletes report it is easier to breathe with a custom athletic mouthguard.
- Enhanced durability – Custom athletic mouthguards tend to last longer and retain their shape longer than store-bought ones.
How Are Customized Athletic Mouthguards Created?
It takes just a few minutes to create a customized mouthguard. Our dental team uses a small handheld camera to take digital images of your teeth and gums. The images are combined to create a digital impression of your teeth that will be used to create a mouthguard that fits properly.
The digital impression and images are sent to a lab that will create the customized mouthguard. Once we receive your mouthguard from the lab, we will call to arrange a time to come pick it up. We will verify that it fits properly and no adjustments need to be made, as well as provide you with advice on how to care for the mouthguard.
Let Us Help You Find the Best Athletic Mouthguard
For some athletes, such as the athlete who just plays occasionally, or those who play a low-impact sport, a store-bought mouthguard may provide enough protection. Our dental team can help you determine if a customized athletic mouthguard is right for you.Victorian Village Dental Care in Columbus, Ohio is ready to help you find the best mouthguard for your chosen sport. Contact us today by calling our office at (614) 298-1543 to request an appointment with Dr. Martinez to explore your options for athletic mouthguards.
