What is Mouth Guard?

An Occlusal Splint (also called a Bite Splint, Bite Plane, Night Guard or a Bite Guard) is a removable dental appliance carefully moulded to fit the upper or lower arches of teeth worn at night to reduce the amount of grinding pressure transferred to the teeth. Bite Guard offers relief for the muscles of the jaw and protection of the teeth from wear and breakage. Most of sport person use mouth guard in order to protect teeth, gum and jaw from injury.

Teeth grinding and teeth clenching also known as Bruxism, generally it occurs during sleep and can often go unnoticed. Bruxism is the technical term for the grinding of teeth in sleep.

Problems associated with Bruxism

• Wearing of teeth – chronic teeth grinding of the teeth wears them down.
• Cracked teeth – when enough pressure is exerted through Bruxism, it can lead to a cracked tooth.
• Teeth loss – over time, cracked and broken teeth can lead to teeth loss.
• Receding gums – Bruxism is one of the leading causes of gum recession.
• Sore jaw, neck pain, and headaches – (Teeth) clenching the muscles of the mouth can lead to sore muscles in the jaw or neck, sometimes accompanied by headaches.

Temporomandibular Joint Disorder – commonly known as TMJ syndrome, this joint disorder affects the point where the mandible (lower jaw) meets the skull. As TMJ syndrome progresses, it can lead to pain and impairment in the normal functioning of the Clench and Grind.

Aside for the mouth guard, it is important to get to the source of all the grinding and clenching.

Stress – if this is the problem, reserve sometime in the day for de-stressing activities, like exercise, reading or meditation.

Avoid stimulants – caffeine and nicotine, for instance, mimic the stress response in the body, causing tense muscles.

Retrain the jaw – don’t chew gum or the end of a pencil or straw. This is subconscious training that encourages the teeth and jaw clench involuntarily.

Mouth Guard For Clenching

Mouth guards immediately prevent further damage to the teeth. Here at SACHIN DENTAL CLINIC we take precise impressions from your mouth registering every minute details of gum and teeth anatomy to make your mouth guard such that they fit snug between the upper and lower sets of teeth to keep them from touching. Some of them work by re-directing the force of the jaw pressure. Others work simply by discouraging the bite at all.