If you play contact sports it is always best to wear a gum shield to protect
your teeth in the event of them getting hit.
Trauma to your upper incisor teeth is extremely painful when the event
happens and can result in significant damage to the teeth which can have a
negative effect on your appearance and could mean you having to have many
hours of dental treatment to have fillings, root canal treatments, perhaps
extraction, bridge or implant placement. Needless to say, the more extensive
the treatment you require, the more it will cost you in time and in money –
you could end up spending many thousands of pounds over your lifetime, all
because of one accident. If you wear a fixed orthodontic appliance and do
not wear a gum shield, if your teeth are hit, the brace will give some
support to your teeth but the advice given by dental professional bodies is
to wear a gum shield for contact sports when you are having orthodontic
treatment.
If your brace is removable then you can take your brace out and put in your
gum shield while playing the contact sport. Make sure you put your brace in
your gum shield box and as soon as you have finished your sport, place your
brace back in your mouth.
If your brace is fixed to your teeth you will require an orthodontic gum
shield. There are two features specific to an orthodontic gum shield which
are not found in regular (non-orthodontic) gum shields:
- It fits over the brace and will not pull the brace off when it is being
inserted or removed
- It has space inside it to allow the teeth to move It is extremely
important that the gum shield will allow the teeth to move, otherwise
your orthodontic treatment will be slowed down or simply may not work.
Gum shields may be custom made (i.e made to fit a specific patient) or
generic (i.e can be adapted to fit any patient, often called “boil and
bite”).
To have a custom made gum shield your dentist or orthodontist will need to
take an impression of your top teeth. This is usually sent to a dental
laboratory where the technician will make a model of your teeth and make
your gum shield on the model of the teeth. If you wear a fixed orthodontic
appliance, it is best if the upper arch wire is removed before the
impression is taken and replaced immediately afterwards.
There is a limited number of generic gum shields that are suitable for
wearing with orthodontic braces (eg SISU, Shock Doctor, Opro Shield). At
Armagh Orthodontic Clinic we recommend and provide SISU gum shields
http://www.sisuguard.com/. SISU mouth guards were developed in the USA by an
ENT surgeon and were popular in many American contact sports before making
their way to Europe. The modern technology used in SISU gum shields means
that they absorb the energy in an impact and give superior protection to the
teeth relative to other “boil and bite” mouth guards. In addition they are
comfortable, can be kept in while drinking and talking and can be re-moulded
multiple times while your teeth move.In addition they are comfortable, can
be kept in while drinking and talking and can be re-moulded multiple times
while your teeth move.
The SISU company has such confidence in the protection that their gum shields
offer that they provide an insurance with their gum shields to pay for the
cost of treatment if a dental injury occurred while a properly-fitted SISU
mouth guard was being worn.
If you wear a fixed orthodontic appliance, the first fitting of your SISU gum
shield should be carried out by an orthodontist.
Armagh Orthodontic Clinic stocks SISU gum shields and can be purchased by
anybody (price £25). We will also fit them for free for our patients.
If you would like to book a
consultation
appointment for your child call us now and speak to one of
our team who will be
happy to answer your questions and arrange an appointment
for your child.
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