Protecting Your Smile
Your smile is Your signature, important for interpersonal communication, your self -esteem and your health and well-being. Worth protecting? You bet! Simple appliances can help protect our smile from two very destructive forces, grinding/clenching and trauma.
Grinding (side to side movement) or clenching (stationary squeezing of jaws) collectively known as parafunction, eventually wears teeth down or causes them to fracture. Bonding, crowns(caps), root canal, and even extraction may be required to solve the problems caused by these forces.Most people are not even aware that they grind or clench their teeth. Often these parafunctional habits occur during sleep. Your partner may or may not be aware of the parafunction but your dentist can detect the tell-tale wear patterns and muscle tension at your checkup. Your dentist can make a comfortable appliance to be worn at night to prevent the parafunction or at least the destruction the parafunction can cause. There are many types of appliances (sometimes called occlusal guards or nightguards). The dentist takes into account the health of the jaw joint, the patient’s bite relationship and the severity of the problem when selecting an appliance. While your local pharmacy sells guards which claim to accomplish the same end, they cannot.
A custom fitted and calibrated appliance minimizes forces for the patient’s unique chewing pattern and harmonizes with the muscles of the head and neck. If harmony with muscles of the head and neck sounds odd it should not. One sign of night-time grinding is jaw muscles that are tired in the morning. Some patients find that their jaw is stiff in the morning and find it hard to open wide.
The other important protection for your smile is protection from trauma. Sporting events often put the athlete at risk for tooth fracture. There are a number of good over the counter appliances available at large sporting goods stores. I personally recommend them to my growing patients especially before all the permanent teeth have erupted. Once a patient has an adult dentition a custom sports guard is preferred. The custom appliance is more comfortable as it is better adapted and less bulky.
Protecting your smile from destructive forces of parafunction or trauma is an important consideration. Don’t forget to discuss this issue at your next dental visit. You’ll be glad you did.
