Use of sports guards in Pediatric Dentistry

Abstract

Introduction: The growth and development of the child are two phenomena intimately linked to genetic and environmental factors. Among the environmental factors that can compromise the infant are the practice of high and low impact sports activities. Dental trauma is one of the most frequent causes of consultation, which can cause alterations such as premature eruption of permanent teeth and / or promote dental malpositions and therefore an inadequate maxillomandibular relationship including TMJ. The sports guard or mouth guard is an intraoral flexible plastic device, used during training or competition activities, which protects the orofacial complex from possible injuries. Objective: Presentation of a clinical case with the use of a sports guard in sports practice for the prevention of dental and TMJ traumatic injuries. Presentation of the case: A healthy 9-year-old male presented himself to the Pediatric Stomatology Clinic of the UASLP, with the purpose of developing a mouth guard since he practices taekwondo. Clinically there was bilateral class II molar relation, anterior open bite, protrusion of upper and lower incisors due to lingual projection habit, besides presenting HMI in first permanent molars, a personalized sports guard was made after basic sanitation. Conclusion: We recommend the use of a mandatory mouth guard in the practice of any sport, whether amateur or professional, to protect the dental organs and TMJ, especially in those patients who present risk factors.