Guardian Angels!

So here is something I don't do every day...a night guard. Many patients, sometimes even unknowingly, grind or clench their teeth, mostly at night, but sometimes even during the day. Although it usually does not produce symptoms, it definitely has a negative impact on the teeth. This is sometimes called bruxism.

Teeth are not meant to grind against each other(or open bottles and crack ice)...they are meant to chew food. So when you start to grind teeth against each other, they start to wear out and loosen. Some people will get muscular pain as well...
So what do we do...we fabricate a guard to watch your teeth. It is made out of a clear plastic and it can me made to fit either the upper or the lower teeth. Patients are instructed to wear them when they sleep and even during the day when the grinding is severe...

The first photo shows you what they look like sitting on my lab table...a view from the outside and inside...

They are made on models of your teeth as you can see here...

When the patient comes in we try them in and make sure they fit comfortably and snug and we instruct you in putting them on and taking them off and how to care for them.
And when they are in the mouth they really don't look too bad and some patients do wear them during the day....


So why don't I do this more often...because most of the time when I recommend it to a patient these guards end up in a night table drawer more than in a patient's mouth!
The patients who do best with these are those who realize they have a problem and are actively interested in guarding their teeth!