Sanborn Orthodontics Helping Tackle Summer Sports Injuries

With summer here, there are many questions that patients have about preventing facial injuries.  Summer is a very active time for many of us, whether that means sports or just fun in the sun.  Here at Sanborn Orthodontics, we offer mouthguards to all of our patients that play sports.  We have severeal colors to choose from, which makes it fun during school because patients like to choose their school colors.  These mouthguards are very easy to insert, designed to fit over your braces and are very comfortable.  We recommend these over the mouthguards you find in a retail store, as those tend to be the more rigid, less flexible kind that can damage or break your brackets.

We recommend mouthguards even for patients who are using the Invisalign aligners.  This is because the trays do not offer as effective of protection as a mouthguard does.   If you have a removable retainer that you were full time, we recommend that you remove it when playing sports as well.  This way, if you are hit in the mouth, your retainer will not be damaged.

If you should get into an accident and a tooth is knocked out, you should call your general dentist right away.  The tooth should be rised off immediately with water, but never scrubbed.  It should be held by the crown (top of the tooth) and not the root to avoid damge to the ligaments.  If you are comfortable with placing the tooth back in the socket, do so.  If not, you can place the tooth between your check and gumline.  This provides protection against bacteria.  If you need to transport the tooth, place it in a glass of milk.  This also protects the tooth by keeping it moist until you can receive medical attention.  You should place a gauze or tissue in the socket to stop any bleeding. 

If you should chip or break a tooth, you should call your general dentist or go to the hospitalo for medical attention.  Your dentist can use bonding material that is tooth colored to repair the broken tooth.  You can also call us here at Sanborn Orthodontics, even at night or on th weekend, and someone will call you back as soon as possible to assist in helping you.

Play it safe this summer and have some fun!!!