Sports Mouthguards in Raleigh, NC
Dental injuries can happen to anyone, especially if you are playing physical or close-contact sports, whether professionally or for recreation. VP Dental offers sports mouthguards in Raleigh, NC, to help protect your teeth and gums while participating in sports. Read on because this dental protection might help save your smile in the future.
What are Sports Mouthguards?
Sports mouthguards are dental devices that protect teeth from accidents and injuries. These oral appliances, which are made of medical-grade plastic, are crucial for those who participate in sports that involve physical contact, falls, and flying objects. They can help prevent mouth wounds, jaw fractures, tooth breakage, and other oral injuries from happening.
Sports mouthguards are often worn over the upper teeth. However, Dr. Preston may recommend protecting your lower teeth as well, if you wear braces, dental bridges, or dentures.
Types of Mouthguards for Contact Sports
Sports mouthguards for oral injury prevention come in different types. Each has its own pros and cons, which Dr. Preston will discuss on your consultation.
- Stock – This is a sports mouthguard that you can conveniently buy online or at drugstores. It is affordable and ready to wear. However, it doesn’t offer the best fit and there’s always a chance they will fall out of position.
- Boil-and-bite – Also available for purchase as stock mouthguards, the boil-and-bite type needs boiling and biting to get the shape of your upper and/or lower teeth. Yet, they still may get loose when you’re playing and can be bulky to bite on.
- Custom mouthguard – At VP Dental, we recommend custom mouthguards for athletes and anyone playing sports. Custom mouthguards offer the best fit, comfort, and protection for your teeth and gums from sports accidents and injuries.
Benefits of Custom Mouthguards
Custom sports mouthguards can help protect you from oral injuries when playing sports. Most people, particularly adults, are unaware of how frequent it is to get a mouth or face injury when playing sports. Some sports, like basketball, do not require players to wear sports mouthguards, but others, like football and boxing, are well known for doing so. If you are playing basketball, hockey, baseball, soccer, or volleyball, you might want to consider getting a custom mouthguard to protect your teeth.
Other benefits of custom sports mouthguards include the following:
- Proper fit – Dr. Preston will create a mouthguard based on your oral impression so it fits your teeth perfectly.
- Right thickness – You don’t need to wear bulky stock or boil-and-bite mouthguards. Custom mouthguards offer the right thickness for your comfort.
- Avoid distraction – Loose mouthguards can distract you from the game. Custom mouthguards fit perfectly in place, so you’ll barely notice they’re there.
- Saves money – By preventing mouth injuries like cuts or tooth fractures, you’re avoiding costly dental procedures in the future.
- Longer use – Unlike other types of mouthguards, which you often have to replace, custom mouthguards can last longer. Still, we recommend getting a new mouthguard every new season or every six months.
Safeguard Your Smile During Play
It is best for athletes to wear sports mouthguards to prevent major harm to their mouth, teeth, and gums during a game or event. VP Dental offers custom athletic mouthguards in Raleigh, NC, and we encourage you to get dental protection.
Do you wish you had a bright, healthy smile? Visit VP Dental in Raleigh, North Carolina, to make that dream a reality. Call us at (919) 518-0540 today to learn more about how our experienced dental team and high-quality dental services can improve your smile and oral health!